


Stories We Lived

by SpaceHobo



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Adult Themes, Cabin By The Sea, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, Grimdark, Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, Luke Skywalker Lives, LukexRey, Momma Bear Rey, Parental Abuse, Psychological Torture, ReyXLuke, Reywalker, Sequel, Sex, Torture, Vader is a bastard, grimdark Kylo, kylo ren is a bastard, momma rey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-15
Updated: 2018-06-24
Packaged: 2019-05-07 05:18:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 20
Words: 40,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14664105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpaceHobo/pseuds/SpaceHobo
Summary: My not waited for at all sequel to "Cabin By The Sea". A few years have passed; Rey and Luke's lives are comfortably predictable. But, as all good seafaring folk know: the sea is always calmest before the storm.





	1. Chapter 1

He dove into crystalline clear water, letting himself sink towards the sandy bottom as he held his breath. His lungs strained as he held his breath. This dive he hadn’t bothered with scuba gear or any kind of breathing apparatus; this wasn’t work, for once.

The diver spotted what he was looking for and kicked lazily toward it; retrieving the semi-hidden invertebrate inside which possibly lurked treasure. If not treasure, one might at least find a quick snack. He secured it and a few of its brethren in the net bag slung around his hips and gazed up at the sunlight streaming through the unsullied water. Fish swam unheedingly of the interloper in their midst and for a moment he wished she’d joined him with her camera. Lungs burning, he kicked his flippered feet and propelled himself skyward, enjoying the play of water over his skin. 

Luke burst through to the surface, gasping for breath and grinning madly as he struck out toward the anchored white yacht that rocked slowly in the gently lapping waves. He climbed up the ladder, hanging the bag on a conveniently located hook and taking off the flippers, then walked dripping towards the upper deck where his wife was lying face down on a deck chair. 

She appeared to have fallen asleep and he stood slightly back, an evil smile on his face, before he stalked slowly forward and leaned his wet head over her sun-warmed back. She let out a startled shriek as he shook himself like a dog, sending droplets of water all over her and making her bolt upright in absolute terror.

“You absolute asshole, Luke Skywalker!” Rey yelled, launching herself at him and swatting him in the chest. 

He caught her in his arms, lifting her off her feet and laughing with all the careless abandon of a prankster teenager. 

“I am _so_ going to make you pay for that!” she growled grumpily as he hoisted her up. She automatically wrapped her legs around his waist, her bare breasts resting against his chest as she glowered at him.

Luke craned his neck forward to try to kiss her, but she turned her face away defiantly and he was only able to kiss her cheek.

“Oh come on,” he said in a low voice. “I was just teasing you.” 

She harumphed at him, feeling his hands travel over her bikini bottom clad butt and squeezing playfully. He nuzzled her throat apologetically, gently kissing from jaw down to collarbone.

“And how do you plan on punishing me for my transgressions?” he murmured against her skin.

“Oh I’ll think of _something_ to suit your crimes.”

“Forgive me, Princess Rey, my perfect one. I am so terribly sorry to have disturbed your sunbathing.” he continued, ever more distracted as he brushed kisses over her chest and up the other side of her throat. 

She sniffed haughtily again at him, playfully refusing to give in. Her legs tightened around his waist, her heels locking against the small of his back. Rey skillfully raked her free hand over his chest, putting just enough pressure on his skin with her nails to make goosebumps rise on his arms. 

“Now who’s being naughty?” he growled, lips hot as he pressed kisses over her throat.

“Certainly not me.” she retorted haughtily, her voice just as suggestive.

It was exceptionally lucky, Rey thought as he all but tossed her over his shoulder and carried her below deck to the spacious captain’s quarters, that Lando had liked Luke well enough to arrange and pay for this trip for them. There would have been no way they could have afforded a vacation like this on their combined professor’s salaries, even with the supplemental income from Luke’s intern and research programmes. Lando had arranged everything for them after hearing they’d never actually made it onto their honeymoon, despite their hopeful plans. 

Rey gasped as he tossed her onto the bed; she couldn’t help but grin as he crawled over her, hands eagerly and greedily skating over her skin. He was still her grumpy old former professor; still greying of hair, still with a slight belly, still walking with a limp from the altercation with Kylo that had _finally_ removed him from their lives forever. Since their daughter Isobel’s birth, however, he’d started making an effort to be more active and healthy. She was glad he hadn’t taken up anything crazy like P90X or Crossfit, but he’d started swimming more and watched what he ate more carefully, even begrudgingly refraining from imbibing _quite_ as much beer as he’d normally have drunk. This change had caused a marked increase in his energy level, ability to get things done, and (much to her eternal amusement) had been a definite cause in his increased libido. 

The other new change had been the haircut. He’d very insistently refused to get rid of the beard entirely, but kept it more carefully maintained than he had when they’d been ‘totally not dating’. Poe had been behind the quite drastic change and when Luke had shot her what sounded like a very worrying text one Autumn afternoon, she’d been convinced something dreadful had happened.

_Babe. I don’t want you to freak out._

_?????????!!!!!!!_

He’d returned home looking exceptionally concerned and half covering his head with a hoodie as he walked through the door, a smirking Poe in tow.

_“Would you quit?” the dark haired man had teased, tugging the hood off and running a hand backwards through Luke’s newly shorn locks. Rey’s eyes went wide with shock at the sight; all his beautiful shaggy locks which she had long enjoyed running her fingers through, were gone! She gave Poe a murderous look._

“It’ll grow back if you hate it.” Luke said at her look of horror, his forehead wrinkling with concern.

Rey composed herself, remembering how he’d handled things when she’d gotten a haircut he’d not been over the moon with. She bit her lip, running her fingers through the short, slicked back top and the fade shaved sides. Rey could feel some kind of styling product in his hair and she glanced at Poe disapprovingly.

_“You let him get something he’d actually have to maintain? You know most of the time I have to remind him to brush his hair?” Rey had scolded._

_Poe had given her an apologetic and sheepish smile._

_“Well **I** thought it looked sexy.” _

Rey ran her hands through his hair as he kissed his way down her body, paying particular attention to her newly suntanned breasts. 

“You are _such_ a damn lecher, old man.” she said in between gasps, her back arching as his mouth closed over her nipple. 

He grinned up at her, resting his chin between her breasts as his greying hair fell in his eyes. She shivered at the feeling of his rough stubble scraping lightly over her skin. 

“Mhmmm….. One of my best qualities, one might say.” he growled, his fingers untying the sides of her swimsuit, tossing it aside in a fit of pique.

“Oh….. fuck.” she swore as experienced fingers and a familiar mouth teased her. “I should make you go shower, you’re covered in sea water.”

“Good for the skin.” he mumbled from between her thighs. 

“One day you’re gonna have to explain why a farm boy who grew up in a desert is apparently part selkie.”

“Well then,” he replied, kissing up the inside of first one thigh, then the other. “you might have to reveal what you did with my seal skin….”

“Oh well we can’t have tha-THAT.” she gasped. “Then you might get away and I’d be all alone.”

“Never.” he mumbled through a mouth full of Rey.

“I’ll never understand why you en-enjoy doing that-ah fuck!” Rey groaned, her fingers curling around the back of his head and keeping him pressed against her.

“Ever occur to you that it’s just _fun_ to see you completely lose it.” Luke replied, sounding slightly muffled. “Especially if _I’m_ the one making you lose control. I’m a very selfish man, you know.”

“Bastard.” she swore, eyes clamping shut as he brought her closer and closer to the edge. “I’ll have my revenge one day.”

“I quiver in my flip-flops in anticipation of that day.” he purred, trailing a slow line of hot kisses back up her body.

Rey revelled in the feel of her husband against her; he was the perfect complement to her: rough where she was smooth, reserved while she was outgoing, confident when she was not and vice versa. Their bodies moved together in a dance they’d long ago perfected, each paying close attention to the cues of the other and drawing out much needed pleasure from each other’s bodies. She whimpered into his shoulder, her fingers digging into his back as she finally came, the warmth and relaxation washing over her like a soothing bath. 

His lips traced worshipful lines over her chest and throat, finishing in a deep and languid kiss that left her breathless. Luke rolled to the side in happy exhaustion, pulling her in close and nestling his face in her hair. 

“It’s almost a shame we have to head back home soon.” Rey murmured sleepily, drawing ticklish swirls and patterns on her husband’s chest.

He grunted drowsily, giving her a squeeze.

“I won’t pretend I wouldn’t love another month of just floating out here unbothered by people…. Nothing but waves and diving and my beautiful naked wife.” Luke replied, groping for her butt but only being able to reach her hip. 

Rolling her eyes, Rey pushed herself up on her elbow and gazed down at him disapprovingly.

“Is that all I am to you?” she said mock offended.

“Of course not, dear.” he said, smiling innocently. 

She growled, grabbed her pillow, and thwacked him in the chest soundly. Laughing, Luke grabbed her and wrapped his arms around her, cuddling her close as he covered her in kisses. 

“I love you, Mrs Weirdo.” Luke said in a low voice. 

“I love you too, Mr Weirdo. Now let me get dressed; we have to head back to port soon.”

Luke gave her a pouting look, reluctantly releasing her and watching her scoot off the end of the bed in search of clothes. Sighing, he too got up and retrieved a pair of gym shorts and his flip flops, putting them on and gazing around the cabin that had been their solitary retreat for the last month.

Rey didn’t know Lando Calrissian well, but after the wedding, the older man had insisted on being allowed to organise a vacation for Luke and his new bride. It had taken them this long to find the time to take such a trip in between babies being born, jobs being acquired, and attempted murders happening. Luke had very firmly insisted Rey not inquire about details regarding _how_ exactly Lando was able to afford luxuries like a half a million dollar yacht and airfare to remote and exotic locales in the same way that normal people bought Snickers bars on a whim at gas stations. She’d been wary of the gift at first, but after one day aboard the _Lady Luck_ on calm seas with no one around but her finally relaxed and very attentive husband, she resolved to thank Lando for the gift every time she saw him.

Their trip was sadly at an end, however, and Rey saw the same reluctance to return to the banalities of daily life in her husband’s eyes as she knew lived in hers. As much as she didn’t want to leave, she was missing their daughter Isobel. Maybe one day they three could sail off together into the sunset and enjoy sunny days and balmy nights. 

It took her the better part of an hour to track down all their luggage and repack things, setting the twin suitcases by the end of the bed and laying out clean clothes for the both of them for their return trip the following day. Rey padded out on deck and found Luke preparing dinner at the grill up on the top deck, the smell of fish sizzling making her mouth water. 

Gazing out at the sun setting on the horizon, she leaned against the railing and took a deep breath of the light, salty sea breeze. In that brief moment, she felt utter contentment. Husband safe, return trip taken care of, body tanned and relaxed for the first time in ages, and she was soon to see the people she loved most in the world. What more was there to ask for?


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Home is where the heart is.

Luke let out a groan of complaint as Rey helped him out of the airplane seat. Joints cracked and popped in protest as he straightened himself out; ever more grateful that Lando had arranged for first class seating on their return journey. He was sure he’d be even more of a pretzel if he’d been crammed into the business or economy seating that would have been his and Rey’s only option had they attempted to pay for this trip on their own. She rubbed the small of his back soothingly. 

“Come on, my old man.” she teased.

He sidled out of the seating area and into the aisle, reaching up and retrieving their carry-ons from the compartment above their heads and taking down his rucksack and her messenger bag. Rey took her bag from him and they shuffled toward the front of the plane, eager to get off and see their family. Once out and into the bridge to the terminal, they quickened their pace, grabbing one another’s hands and half jogging to get free of the crowd. 

Rey spotted the little trio of Han, Leia, and Izzy, standing outside the arrivals gate. Izzy was now three, her mass of brown curls untameable and her bright blue eyes more like her father’s than ever. The little girl had her mother’s indomitable spirit and her father’s love and curiosity of the sea. As Rey and Luke deplaned and came down the exit ramp and into the terminal, they could see Izzy squirming in the arms of Luke’s brother in law.

As they cleared the gate, Han let Izzy down and the little girl barrelled towards her parents. Luke’s arms were full of their carry-ons, so Isobel flung herself into Rey’s arms. Rey caught her, swinging her up into the air and settling her onto her hip.

“Oh my goodness!” Rey exclaimed. “You’ve grown at least a foot! Luke, how long were we gone!? How old are you now, Izzy? You must be at _least_ sixteen!”

The child laughed happily, wriggling in her mother’s grasp as she attempted to hug both parents at the same time. 

“Daddy, Mummy is being _silly_ , tell her!” Isobel said in the slight hint of accent she’d picked up from Rey.

Luke fixed Rey with a mock serious look. 

“Mummy, you are being very silly. I command you to cease at once.” he said gravely.

Isobel burst out laughing again, flinging herself at Luke with a child’s reckless abandon and instinctual knowledge that no matter where she fell, mummy or daddy would always be there to catch her. Obedient to the knowledge of prior experience as well as some kind of inborn ‘Dad-sense’, Luke abruptly dropped the bags he was holding as Isobel hurtled towards him.

“Jesus Han, what did you give her today, rocket fuel?” Luke swore, resituating Izzy in his arms as the girl wriggled against him, her arms like a boa constrictor around his neck.

“Well yeah, that’s what was left after I sold the AA-589 and liquidated all your assets to pay for your daughter’s insatiable mac and cheese habit.” Han replied coolly. “How was the trip?” 

“Great. Still got sand in my shoes.” Luke quipped, lifting a foot as if to demonstrate. 

“Speaking of mac and cheese, food should be a thing that happens.” Rey piped up. “We’ve passed through I don’t know how many time zones, I don’t know whether I’m coming or going, and I’m absolutely starving.”

Leia threaded an arm through her sister in law’s. 

“That can be arranged. We’ll take you up to the house for dinner. Your car’s parked there anyway.” 

*&^%$#$%^&*

Han cooked, as usual, and the four adults ate and chatted while Izzy played musical laps every fifteen minutes or so until the meal was finished and the socialisation continued.

Rey glanced over at Luke, asleep on the couch with Izzy crammed in the little hammock of space made by his arm against the back of the couch. Both were snoring mightily and the little girl’s leg was slung over her father’s belly, the hand not in her mouth tangled in Luke’s beard. Also snoring were Han and Artoo; the former sacked out in his armchair, mouth open and a beer dangling precariously from his hand; the latter ‘whuffing’ from time to time in his sleep as he lay on the floor.

“Of course she’d be a Daddy’s girl.” Rey mused.

“We should take a picture.” Leia whispered beside her. “That’s too precious for words.”

Lifting her phone up, Rey prepared to take a picture. It was then that Izzy let out a tremendous and very impressive fart, startling Artoo from his sleep next to the couch, but not actually awakening Izzy herself. Luke cracked open one eye and gave Rey an anguished look.

“Was that the dog?” he choked, eyes almost watering.

“Afraid not. All your daughter.” Rey informed him.

“Ah, the delicacy of little girls.” Leia mused, stifling a gale of laughter in a throw pillow. 

“Why is she _your daughter_ when she does something cute and _my daughter_ when she unleashes chemical warfare from her ass?” Luke hissed softly.

Rey merely smiled. Isobel snuggled closer to her father, a contented and cherubic smile on her sleeping face. Luke made a pained expression and wrapped his arm around the toddler, tucking her under his chin and drifting back off to sleep.

Leia stood and took a throw blanket off the back of the couch, tossing it over the napping pair and tucking it around her niece's small form. Luke made a small grunt of thanks. His sister patted his bare foot affectionately before nodding at Rey and heading toward the back porch.

“Wanna see embarrassing pictures of Luke when we were kids?” Leia asked mischievously.

“Oh absolutely.” Rey grinned, picking up her glass and treading the familiar path to the porch swing on the back porch of the Solo residence.

She settled into its comfortable, homey cushions and gazed out at the bluff over the bay. The running lights of fishing boats twinkled in the growing darkness and Rey could just see the silhouette of the barrier fence that ran along the edge of the bluff and marked the edge of Han and Leia’s property. Almost as soon as Izzy had been born, Han had ‘spontaneously’ decided that he wanted a fence up around the more dangerous areas of the property. Their house was essentially on a cliff and it was several hundred feet down to a rocky breakwater that could easily have spelled death for dogs or humans - or toddling Skywalker babies.

Leia returned from inside with a handful of old looking photo albums. Rey thought it was a quaint but lost art, keeping photo albums, what with the onset of the internet and cloud storage. Theoretically, family pictures could survive for hundreds of years as digital information as long as someone maintained the family cloud account.

Putting the pile down on the wickerwork stool that served double duty as seating and table, Leia took a sip of her chardonnay and selected one leather-bound binder, flipping it open at random. Rey almost spat out her drink as her eyes settled on a grainy looking picture in which an obscenely young Luke was wearing a cowboy hat.

“No.” Rey said, shaking her head. “Nope. I’ll never be able to scrub _that_ image out of my head. Who in god’s name let him wear that ridiculous thing?!”

Leia smiled, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes deepening as she descended into fond memory.

“If I recall correctly, he insisted upon it for a good six months. Then it ‘mysteriously went missing’ while he was out with a girlfriend.” Leia smirked, innocently sipping her wine and turning the page.

Rey took in the sight of young Leia and Luke; barely teenagers in dated fashions that were old enough to be making a come back. In every picture, Rey’s gaze were drawn to Luke’s startling blue eyes. They almost seemed to pierce her from frame upon frame and she felt it no wonder he appeared with a different woman in just about every three pictures. There were candid shots of Leia and Luke play fighting, some of Han and the twins in an old apartment kitchen, some where Luke appeared alone. Leia turned another page and a stranger’s face was revealed, that of an older man; severe looking with a lined face that seemed to have rarely seen a smile. His bearing spoke of a man used to getting his way and with the physical presence to back it up. 

“Who’s that?” Rey asked, leaning forward curiously.

Beside her, Leia seemed to freeze up. The older woman was silent for a moment before finally reluctantly speaking up.

“I didn’t realise those were in there….”

“Are you ok?”

“You’ve never really had a conversation with Luke about our childhood, have you?” Leia said carefully.

“Not really.” Rey said, frowning. “I got the impression it wasn’t something he liked to think about very much. He’s told me the odd story about you and Han, but nothing more.” 

Leia’s fingertips traced the face of the man in the photo so delicately that it was as if she were afraid the picture itself were made of razor blades.

“This is Lord Anakin Skywalker….” 

Rey remained silent.

“Our father.” Leia looked up at her friend and Rey could see no hint of fond nostalgia in her deep brown eyes; there was only pain in her expression. 

“I’m sensing there’s some dark shit behind this other than he was your dad.” Rey said softly.

Slowly, Leia nodded, turning another page in the album and revealing something that should have been a happy family photo. The man from the previous picture stood flanked by Leia and Luke, who must have been about ten years old at the time. All three appeared expensively dressed and Luke’s young face was tense with discomfort. Leia’s eyes, though the picture was grainy, expressed a distinct sense of fear and dread as Anakin Skywalker lay a hand on either of their shoulders. There was no gentleness or comfort in that gesture, only a sense of ownership over the two children who evidently shared his bloodline. 

If she looked hard enough at the photo, Rey thought she could detect the shadow of a bruise on the Leia’s childishly plump cheek.

Rey glanced at her friend. 

“Was he abusive?”

Leia chuckled darkly.

“Abusive?” her fingers tightened on the edge of the book. “Mentally…. Emotionally… physically….” Leia took a deep shuddering breath. “Other ways….”

Rey’s eyes widened in shock and dread but did not press for further details of what was clearly a truly damaging memory. 

“He was a monster.” Leia whispered, hurriedly flipping past enough pages to return to images of teenaged and twenty year old Luke and Leia. 

There was a picture of Luke picking up a vibrantly red haired woman in wide bell-bottomed jeans and a peasant blouse; her long hair flowed in the wind and Luke’s expression was as happy as Rey had ever seen it. 

“That’s Mara, isn’t it?” Rey asked softly.

“Yes. That’s Mara…. She never did like ‘dressing with the times’, so to speak.” 

Rey reached out unconsciously and traced the line of Mara’s hair, flowing like a horse’s mane as it galloped in a field. She felt no jealousy or anger that Mara had gotten to know Luke as a young man; she only felt sadness and sympathy, now able to put a face to the loss that had kept Luke so very locked away within himself for so long. 

“She’s beautiful.”   
Leia nodded. 

“She’d have liked you.” 

Giving a little laugh, Rey settled back against the cushions, half cuddled against her sister in law.

“I’m not sure she would have, really. Given that I’d have been lusting after _her_ husband.”

“That is a good point.” Leia chuckled. “But she would have approved of you. I’m sure she approves of you now…” 

Rey smiled, this time deliberately snuggling against Leia. The latter tossed aside the photo album and wrapped an arm around her sister in law, sipping the dregs of her wine as they gazed out at the twinkling stars.

*&^%$%^&*

Kylo shot the corrections officer a filthy look as the bored man removed his shackles and left the room. Across the table, Hux was regarding him with an equally disinterested expression as he watched Kylo irritably rubbing at his wrists.

“Well?” Kylo barked. 

Hux raised an eyebrow and leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms across his chest.

“Mr Snoke is currently calling in favours with all the judges currently on payroll. It’s not easy; nor is it coming _cheap_ , Ren. You will have a great deal to repay Mr Snoke once this is completed.” 

Kylo sneered, standing up and beginning to pace the small socialisation cell where prisoners normally met with their families, not their subordinates. He fixed Hux with a penetrating stare that unnerved the pale, ginger haired man sufficiently.

“When does Snoke expect these favours to bear fruit? When am I getting out of here?” the dark haired man demanded.

“You do realise you have been found guilty of attempted murder?” Hux asked incredulously. “This is hardly a disputed parking ticket. You must be patient.”

“Skywalker lived, didn’t he?” Ren retorted.

“Hence the ‘attempted’, Ren.”

“He lived. And for two years he’s been on the outside while I’ve been locked away in here. For two years he’s lived the life _I_ should have been granted.” Kylo stared darkly out the barred window that allowed only the briefest second hand light into the cinderblock room. “Well no longer. As soon as I am out of this hellhole, I shall have retribution. And it will start with that bastard child of his.”

Unease began to coil in Hux’s stomach; he sensed another insane plan forming in Kylo’s twisted mind. Though he didn’t care to be a party to it, he knew he was about to be dragged into more drama than he’d ever wanted to deal with. Snoke had been perfectly clear in his instructions; Kylo Ren’s ruthlessness and unwillingness to take no for an answer had made lots of money for First Order Holdings and Hux had been instructed to do anything and everything to facilitate Kylo’s plans, however crazy or unwise they might be. Hux froze as Kylo’s attention again snapped back onto him. The taller man sat down again in the hard plastic seat and lay his hands palm down on the table, leaning forward with a discomforting intensity in his eyes.

“I have a plan that needs to be enacted while I await my imminent release.” he said, dark eyes burning with malign.

Reluctantly, Hux opened a notepad and began to take notes.

“I first need you to make contact with my Grandfather….” 

*&^%$#$%^&*


	3. Chapter Three

It was a deceptively calm evening some weeks later; Leia was seated on the porch with the needlepoint she was pretending to work on and the glass of Moscato we was in actuality working on. Luke and Rey had been home from their extended vacation for a good month or so now and Leia was still adapting back to a routine that didn’t involve getting a toddler up, washed, dressed, fed, and ferried from point A to point B. She attempted a stitch, jabbed her finger by mistake, swore, and then tossed the embroidery hoop to the side, picking up the glass of wine and propping her feet up on the wickerwork table in front of the porch swing. Her phone rang beside her and she answered it absently, taking a sip of the sweet flavoured wine. 

“Hello?” 

“Leia? It’s Amilyn.” 

“Oh, hello darling! How are you.” 

The voice on the other end paused for a far longer time than Leia felt was strictly necessary. 

“Amy?” she pressed.

“I’m sorry. I’m just trying to think about how to phrase this.” her friend said heavily from the other end of the line. 

“What’s going on?” Leia said with rising concern.

Holdo paused again and Leia could hear her taking a deep, steadying breath.

“Kylo is out.” 

Leia’s stomach churned and she felt cold all over.

“I’m sorry. What?” 

“Don’t ask me how. Don’t ask me why. He got some judge to grant him parole. I don’t know how he managed it. I’m still trying to figure it out.” 

“I…. What…. I can’t….” she started. “I… I have to go. I have to call Luke.”

She didn’t even bother to listen to Amilyn telling her she understood and that it was fine. She pressed end and then immediately demanded Siri to call her brother.

*&^%$%^&*

Luke was in his usual evening position, lying on the couch with Izzy on his chest and BeBe between his feet as he watched an old episode of Star Trek. His phone began to buzz in his pocket and he wriggled his hand into it to retrieve it. Leia’s name was on the caller ID and he sensed immediately this was not a call to be ignored. Luke extricated himself out from underneath his daughter and cat, apologising to her and kissing the top of her head as he hurried out onto the back porch. His thumb swiped the answer button and Leia started talking almost as soon as he’d put the phone to his ear.

“Are you alone?” she demanded. 

“What? Yes. Rey’s at work for a department meeting. My turn to watch Izzy.”

“Is there anyone else there?”

“No. Leia what’s going on?” 

He heard his sister sigh heavily, then take a deep shuddering breath.

“They let him out, Luke. I don’t know why. Amilyn called me. She’s trying to get more information but they have already let him out.”

Luke didn’t need to ask who ‘he’ was. He still sometimes woke up from a dead sleep to the echoes of gunshots, the fear he’d felt then at dying and leaving Rey and Isobel alone racing through him again as if it were just happening. 

“Fuck….” he murmured.

“Do you want me to come over?” 

“No…. No I’m fine.”

“You shouldn’t be alone. Who knows what he’s capable of at this point. He must think he’s made of teflon.” the bitterness in her voice was palpable and Luke knew Leia would never quite be over the fact that it was _her_ son that had turned out so inexplicably cruel and evil.

“I’ll be ok, Leia. The house is locked up tight.” 

“Well at least let me send Han-”

He laughed.

“Han’s even older than I am. He’s not going to be able to do anything I couldn’t. It’s fine. As soon as Rey gets home and we figure stuff out I’ll let you know.”

“If you want to stay here-”

“I’ll call you.” Luke said calmly. “Seriously. We’ll be ok. Just give me a few hours.”

“Luke.”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.” her tone was rife with worry and not a little bit of fear. He heard the little catch in her voice that told him she was trying not to cry.

“I love you too, sis. It’ll be fine, really.” 

He hung up the phone and walked back inside, making sure to lock the patio door securely before he sat down on the couch between Izzy and Bebe, the former of whom immediately crawled into his lap to cuddle against him. Luke wrapped his arms around his daughter, burying his nose in her babysoft hair and inhaling the scent of the Johnson’s and Johnson’s shampoo Rey insisted on using on their child. 

“What’s wrong, Daddy?” the little girl inquired, craning her neck back to look at him curiously.

“Nothing, Izzy bizzy. Just…. I like hanging out and watching TV with you.” he said softly, kissing her on the forehead.

She giggled.

“Your beard is tickly!” 

Luke smiled and shifted her, cuddling her close and putting his senses on hyper-awareness as he half watched TV. 

*&^%$#$%^&*

Rey arrived home later than usual, looking exhausted and more than a little perturbed. She dropped her purse and messenger bag by the door and wandered over to where the rest of her family was relaxing in the kitchen. 

“Hey hon.” she said tiredly, dropping a kiss on the top of Luke’s head. 

“Long meeting?” he replied. 

“Ugh.”

“I’ll take that as a yes.” 

Luke eased a dozing Izzy off of him and laid her down on the couch, covering her with a throw blanket. BeBe the cat immediately settled behind the little girl’s curled legs, purring loudly. 

“Are you hungry?” he asked as he headed into the kitchen.

“Yeah, a bit.”

He opened the fridge and pulled out some leftovers, setting about reheating them and pulling a bottle of Rey’s favourite cidre from the door. Rey narrowed her eyes at him.

“What’s going on?” 

Blue eyes met her and he gave her a meaningful look.

“Go get changed; we’ll talk about it after Izzy’s in bed.” 

Her stomach tightened in the way it always did when she and Luke were fighting or something upsetting was on the horizon. Regardless, she gratefully went into the bedroom to change into night-clothes, the smell of re-heated Chinese food filling the house. She washed the makeup off her face and let her hair out of its tight bun, sighing as the tension of the day slowly edged away. 

Izzy mumbled in her sleep and Rey lifted the sleeping child, carrying her into the bathroom to brush her teeth before tucking her in securely into her bed, BeBe following close behind, her orange tail erect as she jumped up next to Izzy and made herself a spot on the blanket. Rey patted the old orange moggy, kissed her daughter goodnight, and returned to sit at the breakfast nook where Luke had prepared her a plate of food. 

“So?” she asked anxiously.

“Eat first.” he said softly. “I get the feeling you won’t want to afterwards.” 

Anxiety at going into overdrive now, Rey firmly pushed her plate away and stared fixedly at Luke until he sighed and relented. 

“You have to promise me you won’t completely lose it.” 

She folded her arms, narrowing her eyes even further as she glared at her husband.

“I make no such promise. Tell me. Now.” 

He pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I got a call from Leia today.” he started reluctantly.

“Yes?” 

“She, in turn, got a call from Holdo.” 

“Yes.” 

“Hon…” he covered her hands with his own, squeezing them gently. “Apparently Kylo managed to get some judge to let him out on parole.”

Rey almost fell off her chair; eyes going wide with shock. Her heartbeat sped up immediately and she felt her breathing quicken. Luke’s fingers closed around hers and he pulled her to him. 

“Baby. Baby calm down.” he said urgently.

“No. Not this again. I can’t-I _won’t_ go through this with him again! How the hell did he get someone to-”

“Rey, it’s going to be ok. I won’t let him hurt you or Izzy-”

“Me!? Luke he’s going to come for _you_ first! How can you be so calm!?” Rey cried, hysteria edging into her voice.

Tears pricked at the edge of her vision, more from anger than anything else; she began to hyperventilate. Luke grabbed her and pulled her close, pressing her right hand firmly over his heart. 

“What did I tell you when he was released the first time?” he murmured in her ear.

She made a move to dislodge herself from his encircling arms but he held her tight. 

“Rey, what did I say?!” he repeated.

Her struggles lessened and she relaxed a little, feeling his heartbeat under her palm.

“This is yours.” Luke said insistently, almost desperately. “I told you then that it beat only for you. Now it beats only for you and Izzy. No matter what.” 

Rey sagged against him; Luke tucked her under his chin, stroking her hair with his free hand. 

“Luke….” she whispered brokenly. “I thought we were free of him.”

“Me too.” he nuzzled her cheek, urging her to look at him.

She gazed up at him with anxious, deep brown eyes that were wet with angry tears. He took her face in his hands and kissed her forehead. 

“Hey, whatever happens? Whatever’s coming? We’ll face it together. Ok?” 

Rey nodded slowly, leaning into him and wrapping her arms tightly around his waist. 

“I can’t lose you.” she said, barely audible as she pressed her face into his chest.

“Never, love. Never.” 

Underneath her ear, Rey listened to his heart beating steadily. For her, every thud-thud was a miracle, given how close she’d come to losing him for good not so many years ago. Her fingers clenched in his t-shirt as she tried to concentrate on the fact that he’d survived an attempt on his life before. He’d been shot before and he’d come back to her. Surely they’d had their fair share of life threatening scares. Surely….. 

*&^%$%^&* 

“You want me to do _what_?” Armitage Hux said flatly, staring at Kylo as he lounged on the leather couch in the apartment Mr Snoke had arranged for the newly released felon.

“I think I was fairly clear in my speech, Hux. Have you gone _deaf_ in the time I was away?” 

“My hearing is perfectly adequate, Ren. I just don’t believe anyone could be so catastrophically foolish to do what you are proposing to do.” 

“It’s perfectly simple.” Kylo said, getting up and striding toward the enourmous wall of windows that looked out over the city. “My uncle and I must share _some_ DNA. Correct?”

“Yes….” Hux agreed cautiously. “But-”

“And the right amount of money in the right pocket would be more than enough to…. tip the scales, should we say, in my favour should the parentage of that little brat- I’m sorry, that adorable little girl- in my favour, wouldn’t you say?” 

“You’ve lost your mind.” Hux murmured to himself. 

Kylo laughed derisively. 

“Make sure it’s done, will you?” Kylo said offhandedly.

“You don’t really think that they won’t have the child’s genetics tested as soon as you start making steps towards doing this, do you?” Hux frowned. “I truly do not understand your motive here; are you _trying_ to gain custody of the Skywalker brat?” 

“Of course not, you idiot.” Ren scoffed. 

“Then _what_? What do you expect to accomplish?” 

Kylo glared at his subordinate. 

“I expect to make Rey Skywalker pay for what she did to me.” 

“And you’re going to do this by making some nonsense bid for her child?”

“That’s merely the beginning of it, Hux. They’ll be so busy running around trying to put out this fire, they won’t be prepared for the end-game.” 

A cold feeling entered Hux’s stomach. Certainly he held no love for the Skywalker clan, nor for Rey herself. They were non-entities to him; strangers his employer’s favourite employee hated and thus, people he was expected to wage a secret war upon. Something about the vagueness of Kylo’s open ended threat made him more and more uncomfortable by the moment. 

“Make sure that’s taken care of. Once that’s completed, we shall embark upon the next step of my plan.” Ren was again gazing out the large window, his shape like a black-hole that sucked in all light and happiness. 

Hux excused himself from the apartment, taking the steps to the first floor two at a time and shivering despite the relative warmth of the coastal air. If he was to do this, he was going to have to find out a few things first. Namely when the Skywalker baby was next due to get a checkup and where at. 

*&^%$#@#$%^&*


	4. Chapter Four

The hysteria Rey had felt that first night after discovering that her ex-boyfriend (and man that had tried to murder her husband) had been released from prison slowly became a sense of general unease and discomfort. It was impossible to remain on edge and on all cylinders at all times. Life went on and had to continue in its scheduled normality; Luke and Rey had to go to work and grade papers, BeBe had to be fed, dinners had to be made and eaten, and Izzy had to have her annual checkups. 

Izzy was remarkably well behaved as she was poked and prodded. She received a shiny Lightning McQueen sticker for her good behaviour and Rey was about to stand up and get her child ready to leave when the nurse frowned at her clipboard. 

“Oh, we’re not done just yet.” the nurse said, sounding mildly confused. 

“We’re not?” Rey replied.

“No. It looks like the Doc wanted some blood drawn. There must be something he wanted checked….” 

Rey looked at her daughter and then at the nurse, who was heading out the door to retrieve the needed equipment. 

“I don’t-” but the nurse was already out the door. 

Upon returning with the blood draw cart, Rey knew there would likely be trouble. Isobel had been very little when she had had her immunization jabs, but she’d likely never remember those. Having blood drawn was very different. She picked Izzy up and settled her in her lap, murmuring soothingly to her daughter as the nurse wrapped the rubber tie around Isobels tiny arm, searching for a vein. Izzy whimpered when the minute needle punctured her skin, but she merely turned her face into her mother’s chest and avoided looking at the blood that was flowing into a fairly sizeable tube. The nurse finished up quickly, pressing a cotton ball against the tiny pin prick of blood on the inside of Isobel’s elbow, taping a bandaid over it and patting the little girl’s leg.

“You did great, hon.” she said encouragingly. “I’ll just get this out to the Doc and then you’re good to go!”

Ten minutes later, as a tired Isobel Skywalker was carried out on her mother’s hip, the doctor surreptitiously snatched up the vial of dark red blood from the collection of vials to go out to the lab and carried it into his office.

Hux held out a sealed envelope that was stuffed fat with cash, taking the vial and pocketing it.

“I’d er… get that to its destination as soon as possible if you’re not going to refrigerate it.” the elderly doctor suggested as he opened the envelope and thumbed through the bills inside. 

“I’ll bear that in mind.” grunted Hux coldly, peering out into the pediatrician’s office hallway to make sure he wasn’t watched as he left. 

One thing was for sure, if Snoke didn’t do something about his subordinate’s insane demands soon, Hux was going to lose his cool. He would not continue to be Ren’s whipping boy forever.

*&^%$#$%^&* 

Rey pulled up to her usual temporary parking spot at the day-care where Izzy went during the majority of working hours. She put the car in park and hopped out, pulling her purse over her shoulder and locking the car as she searched out her daughter’s form on the playground. Not seeing her, Rey cross to the room assistant: a girl she’d met once before but could remember the name of.

“Hey…” she started.

“Oh, hey Mrs Skywalker. Samantha, we met last week.” the girl replied, smiling widely.

“Where’s Izzy at?” 

“Oh, your husband said he was picking her up.”

Rey frowned. Luke was supposed to be working late that night. 

“Uhm. No.”

“Well he’s over there by the swings-”

Her gaze snapped up to the swingset; her stomach immediately dropping into her stomach as she saw Isobel talking to a _very_ familiar dark haired figure who had knelt in front of her, obviously talking to her in a low tone of voice.

Her feet were moving before she could even fully register the horror of the situation. Rey darted over, snatching Isobel up in her arms so fast the crouching Kylo didn’t even have the opportunity to back up. 

“What the _hell_ are you doing here?!” she hissed, shifting Izzy onto the hip furthest away from Kylo.

He stood slowly, fastidiously brushing off his fine wool slacks and fixing her with a haughty look.

“Just reacquainting myself with my family, Rey.” he turned his attention to the little girl in Rey’s arms. “Isn’t that right Isobel?”

Not waiting for a response from the child, he continued.

“Really, Rey. It is extraordinarily cruel of you to keep a man from his child.” he said, a pouting look on his sharp features.

“What?! What are you talking about?! We never-”

He reached out to tweak Izzy’s cheek and Rey wrenched herself and her daughter out of range. 

“Fine. If you’re going to be like that….” he adjusted his long coat, glaring at her with malice of forethought. “You’ll be hearing from my lawyers. In this day and age, the courts aren’t friendly to women who hold the affection of their children from their rightful guardians.”

With that, he stalked off, ignoring the curious looks of Samantha and the other teaching assistants. Rey wrapped herself around her daughter, fighting back terrified and angry tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. She hurriedly jogged up to Samantha.

“How the hell did he get in here?!” she demanded of a startled looking Samantha. 

“Uh, well he said he was Izzy’s father-”

“That man is _not_ Izzy’s anything. Much less her father.”

“I-I’m sorry, Mrs Skywalker. I’ve never met Mr Skywalker before and I just assumed-”

“You assumed wrong. That man is a monster. If you _ever_ see him around her again, you need to call the police and then me IMMEDIATELY.” Rey said firmly, her grip on her daughter tightening to the point where Izzy began to squirm. 

“Mommy….” Izzy protested. 

Rey hurried out of the playground, returning to her car where she strapped Izzy into her car-seat and climbing into the driver’s seat. She locked the car doors, looking around for all the world as if she expected Kylo to leap out of the back seat and smother her only child. Rey pulled out onto the road, checking her rearview mirror every minute or so to make sure that she was not being followed and that Isobel was still safe. 

By the time she got home and had gotten Isobel bathed, fed, and ready for bed, she had decided not to tell Luke, for fear he’d haul off and try to confront Kylo himself. She couldn’t handle that. Her heart pounded in her throat and she had to convince herself not to sleep on the floor next to her daughter, knowing that would spark the conversation she didn’t want to have. 

Luke came home ridiculously late that night. She heard him come in as quietly as he could, toeing off his shoes and tossing his pants and shirt into a pile before he lay down next to her on the bed, never bothering to turn on the light.

Rey reached out for him in the darkness, squeezing his hand and feeling him squeeze back.

“Long day?” she whispered.

“So long.” he replied, sounding exhausted.

“Did you eat?” 

He grunted, pulling her hand up to his lips and kissing her palm.

“Too tired to eat. Deal with it tomorrow. Good day?”

Rey paused, part of her wanting to tell him just how not good it had been.

“It was fine.” 

It was his turn to pause.

 

“Ok. Well I know there’s more to it than that, but I also know I’m gonna be dead to the world in about a minute. Tell me tomorrow?” he murmured, still holding her hand to his lips.

“Ok.”

After a moment, she could feel his breathing even out. He’d been too tired to even get underneath the blanket and she eventually loosened his grip on her enough too sit up and throw one of the miscellaneous throw blankets over his lower half. Rey lay awake for hours afterwards, the red numbers of the clock slowly ticking away the minutes and hours. Eventually, she insinuated herself into her husband’s arms. Luke unconsciously pulled her close as he slept and Rey was finally able to let herself relax enough to start to drift off. Her mind stopped racing as she rested her head on her husband’s chest, the familiar and miraculous beat of his heart her lullaby that night.

*&^%$#$%&*

Luke awoke her the morning with a soft kiss and a cup of tea. He had a fully dressed and fed Isobel hanging onto his neck as she peered at her mother over Luke’s shoulder.

“Do you have today off?” he asked.

Rey nodded sleepily. 

“I’m gonna take Izzy to school then, ok?” Luke said softly, carding his fingers through his wife’s hair and pushing it back from her face. “You rest and I’ll see you for dinner, yeah? Maybe you can tell me what’s been on your mind then.”

She smiled, leaning into his touch.

“Ok.” she murmured, pressing a kiss to his palm.

He shifted Izzy around and deposited her on the bed.

“Give Mummy a kiss and tuck her in, Iz.” Luke said.

Isobel clambered over to her mother, giving her a sloppy kiss on the cheek that smelled of Cheerios and toothpaste, then attempted to tuck Rey in securely into the bed. Rey laughed, seizing her daughter’s face in her hands and kissed her all over. 

“Have a good day, Izzy Bizzy.” she said, ruffling the little girl’s short, curly hair.

Luke picked Isobel up and moved her onto his hip, winking at his wife as he carried his daughter out and to the car. 

Rey spent the day relaxing; a rare treat for her in between working, taking care of Izzy, sharing household responsibilities with her husband, and attempting to have any sort of social life. Luke texted her around noon to make sure she was still not doing anything.

_12:12: I swear if I come home and you’ve been cleaning….._

She laughed aloud and texted back that she was about to enjoy a bath and watch some trash TV. 

_12:16: GOOD. Now relax. OR ELSE._

By five o’clock she’d almost been able to push the disturbing encounter with Kylo the previous day from her mind.

*&^%$#$%^&*

 

Kylo smiled at the paper in his hand. He looked up at Hux, who’s expression was that of one who’d just watched someone else do something truly disgusting. 

“This is perfect! How did you do it?” the dark haired man asked.

“You’d have to ask Mr Snoke. One of his people took care of it.” Hux replied, nose wrinkling.

Ren didn’t seem to notice his co-worker’s discomfort and began to pace excitedly. 

“We’ll file the necessary paperwork tomorrow. Hux, you’ll have my undying gratitude for your work on this.” 

The glee in Kylo’s voice made even Hux’s cast-iron stomach roil. He merely nodded listlessly at the man he’d unfortunately been tied to by fate and career before casually excusing himself. As the door shut behind him, he shuddered as if he’d been doused with cold water. Kylo Ren’s grotesque obsession with “punishing” the woman he’d abused for over a year was…. distateful. Even to Hux, who in the past, had not had the most pure of dating history. 

The ginger haired man let out a tired sigh, crossing to the glossy doored lifts and gratefully descending away from Kylo Ren.

*&^%$#$%^&*


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bad news can be dealt with if you have your family beside you.

As with most traumatic and upsetting events, daily life has to take a priority at some point. The general sense of dread was an ever-present cloud over the Skywalker clan’s lives. Han and Leia joined Luke and Rey for dinner, Poe and Finn showing up minutes after the Solos arrived. 

Rey embraced both men with a fervor, they two having been on vacation to the Bahamas for two weeks and lives having gotten in the way for some time before that. Poe, Luke, and Han disappeared out into the garage for a good hour while Finn helped Leia cook dinner. Rey sat with Izzy on her lap as the three adults talked and chatted about life. 

“Mommy?” Isobel asked after a while.

“Yes baby?” 

“Can I have hair like Uncle Finn?” the girl asked, pointing at the man she knew as ‘uncle’.

Rey laughed. Finn had allowed his hair to grow out a little and was now rocking short twisted hair that some enterprising person in the Bahamas had added small cowrie shells to in randomly artistic places. Finn grinned at her as he tested the sauce he and Leia had been tag teaming. 

“Maybe when your hair grows a little longer we can add some shells to it.” Finn glanced at his best friend. “As long as your mom says yes.” 

Izzy looked up at her mother with large pleading eyes. Rey smiled, kissing her daughter on the forehead and letting her down to play.

“We’ll see, Izzy.” 

At that moment, the missing other halves came in through the front door. Luke came last, sorting through the mail he’d retrieved from the mailbox. He dumped the usual advertisements and junk mail into the recycle bin by the fridge and seemed to be frowning at a rather official looking envelope. He opened the heavy white letter and began to read it, his eyes narrowing and colour draining from his face as he did so.

“Luke?” Leia said, noticing his pallor immediately.

Wordlessly, he held the letter out to her.

“What? What is it?” Rey asked, anxiety building in her stomach.

“Ben… _Kylo_ is claiming paternity of Izzy.” Leia said quietly, watching Rey carefully. “And is thus suing for paternal rights.” 

Rey’s vision crackled and darkened around the edges and she swayed precariously at the sudden realisation. Luke grabbed her arm, holding her against him.

“ _What_?!” she breathed incredulously.

“You must be joking!” Poe exclaimed, jaw dropping in shock.

Finn, in a rare moment of perceptiveness, scooped Izzy up and took her outside to play in the sand.

“There’s more.” Leia continued dully as soon as her niece was out of earshot. “According to this the DNA test results show that Izzy could be Kylo’s.” she let the letter drop limply by her side, looking up at her husband in absolute bafflement.

Rey’s eyes snapped to Luke and she hurried to his side and grasped his arm, her breathing coming in panicked gasps. Han and Poe exchanged nervous looks.

“Luke, I didn’t. I swear. There’s no way-”

Luke took her face in his hands and stroked her cheeks with his thumbs, locking eyes with his wife. His gaze was warm and comforting, conveying nothing but calm and understanding.

“Love, I know. I know there’s no way. I trust you. I’ve trusted you for a long time now. You don’t need to tell me.” he murmured soothingly. 

“But-”

“Baby, I have no doubt, _none_ , Rey. Izzy’s mine. I don’t care what that letter says. Even if she wasn’t, I’d _still_ love her.”

“Luke, I-”

“Sweetheart, I know. I wouldn’t put it past him to have someone fudge with the results.” Luke said. “Besides which, he is my nephew, we have to share some DNA. Maybe this is some kind of mistake.” 

Han was frowning in contemplation.

“How the hell did he get Izzy’s DNA anyway? We haven’t even seen him since….” he trailed off, scratching his greying stubble. 

“Oh I _wish_ I could get my damn hands on that little grease-stain.” Poe growled, flexing his fingers. “No offense, Leia. Han.” 

“None taken…” Han replied bitterly.

Poe laid a hand on his friend’s shoulder, giving a firm squeeze. 

“However he got it, he got it. What else does the letter say?” Poe asked.

“There’s a court date.” Leia said numbly. “Rey I’m _so_ so sorry.” 

Still in the warm circle of her husband’s arms, Rey looked up at her.

“It’s not your fault, Leia. It’s never been your fault. Kylo is just…”

“An evil little shit.” Han finished, moving into the kitchen and pushing Leia out of the way as he took a spot in front of the stove, adjusting the temperature on one of the burners. “Listen up. I’m only gonna say this once.” 

Han stirred the sauce pan and turned to the rest of them, spoon still in hand. 

“We’ve been through one or two horrifically traumatic events together. We’re a family. We’re not gonna let some unholy little upstart, who unfortunately happens to me my only child, wreck everything we survived and worked for.” he turned to Luke, who’d finally released Rey from his arms. “You, you’re to text one of us at least three times a day.” 

Luke blinked, frowning at his brother in law as he wiped sauce away from his face. Han had been enunciating his pronouncements by waving the sauce spoon around, flinging sauce all over Luke and half the kitchen. Noticing what he’d been doing, he cleared his throat in embarrassment and deposited the spoon back into the simmering pot. 

“Rey, I want you in contact with someone at all times. If you’re gonna be out on your own and you can’t wait for one of us, then you text or call so we all know you’re safe.”

Poe had pulled out his phone and was feverishly tapping the screen. 

“Ok, there’s an official ‘We Hate Kylo Ren’ group text. You’re all in it. Should be getting initial messages about now.”

On cue, everyone’s phones made their alert noises one right after the other. Rey almost burst out laughing.

“An eggplant emoji, Poe? Really?”

“Well he is a dick.” Poe said, unabashed.

“Good idea, kid.” Han said approvingly. “Now let’s finish this dinner and have a nice meal together.”

They all agreed and a kind of calm settled over the group. It was somehow easier to feel safe and as if things might turn out alright while they were all together. Finn came back inside with a sandy but happy Izzy who proudly showed off the small collection of shells she’d found on the shoreline-

“For when my hair is long and I can have pretty hair like Uncle Finn!” she said earnestly, hurrying to put the precious cargo in her special things box.

When eventually they sat down together, Rey surveyed her family and felt peace descending over her. With her family by her side, she could weather any storm.

*&^%^&*


	6. Chapter Six

It was about a month later. The date of the court appearance was approaching and Rey’s anxieties were daily eased, if not by her husband and daughter, than by Poe, Finn, Leia, or Han. D-Day, as she’d taken to thinking of it, was going to come regardless. Leia had assured her that the initial hearing would be relatively painless, as well as saying she’d be beside her to answer any legal questions.

Luke wearily shuffled in through the front door of their home, listlessly dropping his briefcase on the table by the door and wandering into the living room. 

“Hi hon.” Rey said distractedly as she graded papers. 

He fell face-first onto the couch, letting out an exhausted groan into the couch cushions.

“Long day?” she asked, peering over at him.

Luke mumbled a long string of syllables that were muffled by the pillow in his mouth. Rey frowned, glancing up as she heard Isobel come running in to fling herself at her father’s unresisting back. He grunted with the impact of the three year old landing on him, mumbling again as Rey tactfully reached over to retrieve their over exuberant offspring. She slung Izzy onto her hip for a moment before depositing her in the armchair she’d just vacated. 

“You ok, babe?” Rey asked, concerned.

Sluggishly, Luke turned his head toward her and she could see his face was flushed and his eyes red rimmed. Rey knelt beside him, pushing back a sweaty curl of hair and laying a hand against his forehead.

“You’re really warm.” she said with a disapproving frown. “Are you coming down with something?”

He blinked. 

“Probably. I think I’ve got time in my schedule to be sick for about six hours.” he mused.

“Oh no. You’re staying home. Bedrest, fluids, tv watching all day. I’ll call Gavrisome myself if I need to.” Rey said threateningly.

“Yes, dear.” 

“Don’t ‘yes dear’ me, Luke Skywalker. Go take a shower and get in bed and I’ll bring you some tea.” 

She kissed the top of his head, running a quick hand through his hair affectionately before she went to the kitchen to prepare a cup of tea for her ailing husband. Izzy sat on the floor near her playing with a stuffed mouse and BeBe, who’s week it was to spend at the Skywalker house. The cat waited patiently while Izzy waved the fuzzy toy in front of her before flinging it several feet away; BeBe would then trot leisurely after it, snatching it up in her teeth or throwing it in the air with a paw before returning it to the giggling toddler who would then repeat the process. 

Rey stroked her daughter’s head absently, the little girl’s baby-soft hair like silk against her fingertips. She poured boiling water into Luke’s favourite ‘#1 Daddy’ mug with a tea bag and added sugar, stirring it a few times before stepping over BeBe and her playmate and bringing the tea into their bedroom. Luke was half-heartedly towelling off his hair, already wearing his pajama bottoms and queuing up something on their bedroom TV as background noise. Rey tried not to stiffen at the sight of the matching exit-wound scars on his back. They were little more than shallow pinkish white penny sized indentations, but they were a constant reminder of how close she’d come to losing him forever. How close she’d come to raising Isobel alone without her father. She placed the mug on his bedside table, crawling onto the bed and wrapping her arms around his bare chest from behind as she pressed a kiss to the back of his neck. 

“How are you feeling?” she asked, playfully running her fingers through his chest hair as she glanced back to see Izzy still happily and safely involved with the cat.

“Not quite like death, but getting there.” he said, the slightly gravelly tone of voice indicating he had a sore throat. “You shouldn’t get too close; I don’t want you and Izzy to get the plague too.” 

She rolled her eyes and nuzzled his jawline, kissing the little patch of skin between jaw and ear before reluctantly releasing him and moving away to sit on the edge of the bed.

“I guess you’re right….” she grumbled. “I can sleep in Izzy’s room tonight, I suppose.”   
He nodded at her, eyes slightly red and streaming a little. Luke coughed, the sound deep in his chest. Rey frowned at him in concern and made a gesture for him to get underneath the covers. He rolled his eyes, trying to chuckle but coughing instead.

“Under the blankets. And stay there. I’ll bring you something to eat.”

He swallowed, wincing painfully.

“Actually, just tea right now would be good.” Luke assured her.

Rey looked at him doubtfully but didn’t press the matter. She tucked him in tightly, stroking his hair back from his flushed forehead and pushing the hot cup of tea closer to him on the bedside table. 

“Anything you need?” she asked, reluctant to leave him alone but also needing to keep an eye on Isobel.

“Laptop and the remote and I’ll be fine.” he croaked. 

She retrieved his MacBook and placed it and the remote in his lap, giving him another concerned stare before he waved her off. 

“I’ll be fine, babe.” Luke said hoarsely. “Go eat dinner with Iz. I love you.” 

Rey sighed, returning to the kitchen to finish making dinner for herself and their daughter.

The evening passed uneventfully as it usually did. Rey made fried rice and teriyaki chicken and she and Izzy ate on the couch with an attentive BeBe begging for scraps. From time to time, she could hear Luke coughing from their bedroom and each bout of coughing brought her more worry. She’d been around him when he’d gotten colds before, but she’d never heard him this miserable. Rey resolved that if he was still this noticeably uncomfortable tomorrow, she’d insist on a doctor’s visit. 

Around eight, Rey left a napping Izzy on the couch to go and check in on Luke; she’d not heard him coughing for a while and discovered him passed out with his laptop still on his lap and a sleeping BeBe in the crook of his arm. As quietly as she could, Rey closed his laptop and set it to the side, tucking the blanket in more securely around him as she pressed a chaste kiss to his feverish forehead. She then returned to put Izzy to bed, the tired toddler whining that she wasn’t sleepy even as yawns interrupted her protestations. Some time later, Rey lay in her daughter’s ‘big girl’ bed, Izzy already fast asleep in her footy-pajamas, curled against her mother’s side. Despite all the insanity of the prior weeks, in this moment she felt contented and happy. 

*&^%$#$%^&*


	7. Chapter Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Predators always take out the sickest of the herd first.

In the morning, Izzy was the one to wake her mother up by all but jumping on Rey’s full bladder. Rey glanced at the Peppa Pig clock next to Izzy’s bed and bolted upright in shock at the time. She hurriedLY got Izzy’s clothes ready, instructing the toddler to get her pajamas off while Rey quickly ran into the guest bathroom to pee. When she returned from the bathroom, Izzy had managed to get her pajamas off and one sock on but hadn’t progressed further than that; the little girl stood bare-ass naked in the middle of her bedroom, waving her other sock in the air and watching it with all the attentiveness of an episode of Blue’s Clues. 

“Come on, baby. Time to get dressed.” Rey urged her daughter.

Rey’s phone began to chirp demandingly and she swore under her breath. 

“Mummy! That’s a _bad_ word!” Izzy scolded.

“Yes it is, Iz.” Luke’s voice came thickly from the doorway.

Rey looked up to see her husband in his ratty grey bathroom, mouth slightly open and his nose and upper lip red with irritation.

“How long have you been up?” she asked.

“Since about four…..”

“Honey!” Rey exclaimed, appalled.

“Lemme get her dressed.” he said, sounding exhausted. “You go take that call and get your lunches ready. I’ll try not to breathe on her.” 

She nodded, not having the time to argue. They had approximately ten minutes to get dressed and out the door before Izzy would be late for her daycare and Rey would be late getting to her class of the day. Rey darted into the bedroom to grab her ringing phone she answered it without looking at the caller ID. 

“Hello?” she said into the receiver.

There was no voice responding, but she could definitely hear breathing.

“Uhm…. helloooo?” she said again, rummaging through a drawer for her good bra. 

The breathing continued. Rey frowned at her phone and pressed the ‘end’ button, muttering to herself about pervs. She dressed quickly and returned to Izzy’s room to discover Luke had managed to wrangle the toddler into a pair of pink leggings and a grey t-shirt and was now fastening her sneakers while Izzy idly played with his messy hair. He swept her up in his arms, carrying her into the kitchen and depositing her in her high chair while Rey went about throwing together something resembling a healthy lunch for her daughter. Luke poured a bowl of cereal for Izzy and sat with her while she ate, encouraging her to eat quickly but not to forget to chew. 

“Thank you, babe.” Rey said a few minutes later, sounding harried as she wiped Izzy’s face and hurried her into the bathroom to brush her teeth and for one last potty break. 

Luke saw them to the door, pointedly covering his mouth when she came in to give him a goodbye kiss. Rey defiantly kissed the back of his hand, giving him a squeeze before darting out the door.

“Promise me you’ll go to the doctor if you’re not better by noon?” Rey demanded worriedly. 

He nodded wordlessly, smiling tiredly at her.

“We’ll see you tonight?” Rey said.

“Yeah. Have a good day, hon. Izzy bizzy, be good.” he croaked.

“I will Daddy!” Isobel said with a wide smile.

Rey hurriedly bundled her daughter into her carseat and waved goodbye to her husband as he closed the door, hopefully to return to bed to sleep off the rest of the illness.

Back inside, Luke dropped his robe listlessly onto the floor and fell into bed, rubbing his temples and hoping, as all men do when they are sick, that death would soon come to rid him of this accursed infirmity. He curled up on top of the mussed blankets, too uncomfortable to lay beneath them. His skin felt hot and sweaty and he toyed with the idea of taking a cold shower. Sleep stole over him before he could elect to do so and it was a few hours before he woke up again. When he did wake up, it was to the jarring sound of glass shattering and BeBe letting out a frightened yowl before skittering away to hide underneath Izzy’s bed.

Despite his jerking upright out of bed at the sound, he was still too sluggish to register, much less fight back against, the three dark figures who had suddenly appeared in his bedroom. All three wore ski-masks and dark clothing. Luke reeled back as one made a grab for him, the two grappling with one another for a moment before the stranger slammed him against the bedside table. A bright flash illuminated Luke’s vision and he dropped to his knees, trying to reorient himself. Hands forced him to the floor as he struggled for breath, rough fingers wrapping a blindfold around his eyes and another set tightly bound his hands and feet. A foot connected with his stomach as he let out a pained gasp. 

“Was that _entirely_ necessary?!” a voice demanded of the owner of the foot. 

“Shut the fuck up and do as you’re told!” a harsh and yet somewhat familiar voice hissed. “It was supposed to be _her_ not him.” 

Luke was hauled upright.

“Ben?” he said hoarsely. 

A violent blow connected with the side of his head and he collapsed, colliding with the hard side of his bedside table. Luke could feel something warm and wet coat the side of his face. As a rough set of hands grabbed him and lifted him bodily from the floor, the only thought he could even partially process was of BeBe. _I hope she’s somewhere safe. I hope they didn’t hurt her. Rey…. Izzy-_

*&^%$%^&*

Her phone read a little after four by the time Rey arrived home with Izzy in tow. She’d texted Luke a few times throughout the day but hadn’t received a response; she’d hoped that meant he was sleeping off the virus or whatever it was that was making him sick. Rey unloaded her daughter and the two bags of groceries she’d picked up while they were out, taking Izzy’s hand as they walked into the house. Isobel, in typical form, was hopping her way up the steps and inside, still overflowing with excitement from her after day-care playdate with President Gavrisome’s granddaughter Callie. Rey didn’t immediately notice anything wrong; putting the groceries away and filling up a glass with water after she’d situated Izzy on the couch. She headed into her’s and Luke’s bedroom, expecting to find him asleep or at least watching TV.

Rey dropped her glass to the floor at the sight of the mess in their bedroom. The door out to the patio was shattered and Luke’s side of the bed was a mess of rumpled blankets, knocked over lamp, and scattered detritus. She choked back a scream, seeing a large red smear on the bedside table. Instantly, she ran back to where Izzy was sitting on the couch, merrily playing with her dolls, which she’d instantly unpacked the moment she’d been sat down there moments prior. 

 

“Izzy honey we have to go.” Rey said, scooping up the little girl. 

Ordinarily Isobel would have made a fuss, but even she could pick up the tone of terror in her mother’s voice. Rey hurried snatched up her keys and purse and darted back out to her still warm car, starting it up and quickly backing it out of the driveway even as she dialled 911. 

“911, what is your emergency please?” the calm voice on the other end of the line asked.

“My home has been broken into and my husband is missing.”

“Have you had any contact with him today?”

“I just spoke to him this morning and nothing was wrong, but there’s blood on his side of the bed and-”

“What is the address please?”

Rey listed off the address, driving one handed and mindlessly toward Leia’s office in town. 

“We’ll have an officer there as soon as possible. Are you on the premises?”

“No.” Rey felt hysteria edging in her voice. “No. I’m going to my sister in law’s. I have a little girl. My ex did this and I don’t trust…. This is not safe for my child.” she finished firmly.

“Ma’am, please try to stay calm. I know this is a stressful situation. Police are on their way. May I please have a number at which you may be reached?”

 

She quickly told the dispatcher her number and hung up after an agreement to have an officer call her. Almost as soon as she hung up, she shouted at Siri to call Leia. 

“Come on… come on…. Pick up pick up pick up!” Rey muttered to herself.

“Leia Organa Skywalker Solo’s office, how may I direct your call?” the bored sounding voice of Leia’s secretary came over the line.

“I need to speak with Leia immediately.” Rey barked into the phone. 

“I’m sorry, Mrs Solo is not taking any calls at this time, she’s in a meeting-”

“Tell her it’s about her brother!” Rey yelled angrily.

The young woman on the other end of the line seemed taken aback but stepped away for a moment.

“Rey?” Leia’s voice came seconds later. “Is that you?”

Rey dissolved into tears as the dam burst.

“Honey, what’s wrong!?” Leia asked, concern rising in her voice.

“I need you, can you please come?” Rey sobbed. 

“Well of course, but-”

“Something’s happened to Luke.”

There was an uneasy silence on the other end of the line.

“He never texted the group chat back after 11….. Where are you?”

“I’m almost to your office.”

“I’ll be out in five minutes.” Leia said firmly.

Rey arrived in three minutes and Leia was walking out the door, her coat on and her briefcase in her hand. Rey pulled up next to the curb, ignoring the fire lane signs and almost leaping into traffic as she got out of the car.

The world was going fuzzy and black at the edges, Rey’s breaths came in sharp gasps as panic rose higher and higher in her chest. Leia seized her by the shoulders and held her close, murmuring soothing words as Rey sobbed.

“Sweetheart, what’s going _on_? What’s happened to Luke.” Leia pressed her gently. “Where’s Izzy?”

Rey motioned wordlessly to the car, hiccoughing and still gasping.

“I-I came home from Izzy’s play date after school, with President Gavrisome’s granddaughter and-and our patio door was broken and….. And there was blood…. So much _blood_ on his side of the bed. He st-stayed home today because he wasn’t feeling good. Something awful’s happened. I just kn-know it.” 

Leia was silent for a moment, rubbing Rey’s back in concentric circles as her racing mind fought to make sense of the strange situation. She urged Rey toward the car, helping her into the passenger seat and taking the keys for herself. She glanced back at Izzy, who was strapped into her car-seat in the back and looked extremely distressed but had not yet started to cry. Leia climbed into the driver’s seat and started up the car, adjusting the seat a little closer and checking her mirrors as she headed back toward the little cabin by the sea her brother had bought oh so many years ago. Rey’s hicupping breaths were the only sound in the car as Leia sped expertly through the drive she knew by heart. That heart was in her throat as she contemplated something bad having happened to her twin. She’d said many times she didn’t believe in all the fairytales and hokum that people insisted were real, but she felt that she would instinctively _know_ if her brother had been killed. She didn’t voice this to Rey, fearing that she would further exacerbate Rey’s already razor sharp anxiety and make it even harder for her to calm herself. 

“Auntie Leia?” Isobel piped up from the back seat.

She glanced at the toddler in the rearview mirror. 

“Yes, honey?”

“Why is mummy upset?” Izzy asked in her combination of her mother’s and father’s accents.

Leia looked at Rey for guidance, not wanting to say anything that might alert the child that something was catastrophically awry. Still shaking slightly, Rey turned her upper body in her seat and looked at her daughter, trying to smile comfortingly.

“Mummy just can’t get ahold of Daddy and it’s making her very upset.” Rey said through her forced smile. “I’m very worried.”

“Is Daddy ok?” the little girl asked worriedly.

“I’m sure he’s fine, sweetheart.” Leia said softly. More quietly, she murmured to Rey out of the corner of her mouth. “I’m about to hit the turn off. Do you want me to take Izzy home to stay with Han while we deal with this? He’s home this week.”

Rey thought for a moment, then nodded silently. 

“Ok.” Leia reached out with her right hand, gripping Rey’s left as it clenched and unclenched on her vibrating knee. “We’ll find him. I promise, hon.”

Rey could only nod mutely, her eyes staring blankly ahead and a coldness welling up in her chest. Leia took the turn up to the bluff, driving the winding roads and breathing a sigh of relief as she saw Han’s beat up blue truck in the driveway. She got out, noting that Rey remained frozen in her seat as Leia unclipped the anxious Izzy from her car-seat, picking her up and carrying her into the house on her hip. 

Han was in the kitchen making a sandwich and stuffing his face with potato crisps that he’d very sternly been told to eat only in moderation. The guilt on his face was laughable and Leia rounded the doorway of the kitchen, surprising him in the act of pouring a mountain of salty snacks on his plate.

“Ehhh, hiya hon.” he noticed his niece and attempted to subvert Leia’s disapproval of his snack choice by putting on a cheerful tone with the child. “Hi there, Izzy Bizzy!” 

“We’ll talk about _that_ later.” Leia said sternly. “Right now we’ve got an emergency.”

His guilt and momentary warmth at the sight of Isobel was replaced instantly with concern as Leia handed the child off to him. Han settled her easily onto his hip and she snuggled in close to him, taking comfort from his warmth and solidity as her tiny world was thrust into turmoil around her.

“We’ll talk about that too. Later.” Leia leaned in and kissed her husband deeply, then kissed the top of Izzy’s head as she briskly went back out to the car.

Han gazed after her, an uncomfortable sense of dread building in his stomach. He pushed it down in favour of his niece’s comfort. The old fisherman hitched her up a bit, taking a more secure hold of her as he grabbed his plate and started into the living room.

“You hungry Izzy Bizzy?” he asked, jiggling her slightly and making her laugh.

“Ya!” 

“Well you can have half of my tuna-fish sandwich, wouldn’t that be nice?!” 

“BLECH!”

Han laughed, settling child and plate on couch and table respectively.

“Peanut butter and jelly it is then.”

*&^%$%^&*


	8. Chapter Eight

Leia returned to the car to find Rey still staring blankly ahead, almost unblinkingly.

“Honey you’re going to have to come back to earth before we get to the house.” Leia said as they started off once more.

Rey’s phone rang and she slowly raised it to her ear and answered it.

“Hello?”

“Did you like the surprise?” a distorted voice said in her ear.

Her stomach clenched in fear and she began to shake.

“Wh-what?” she whispered.

“We expected you to be there. Had to settle for second best. Not to worry though. In the end, the goal will have been achieved.” 

“Who is this? What-”

“Would you like to speak with him?” the voice was modulating between high and low frequencies and there was a low hiss undercutting the entire thing; Rey knew it was a human on the other end of the phone, but the effect was downright demonic.

“What are you talking about?”

The voice chuckled and the sound sent ice shooting down her spine.

“Don’t play the fool, Mrs Skywalker. Would. You. Like. To. Speak. To. Your. Husband? While you can…?”

“Luke?!” she cried. “You took him, where did you take my husband you monster!” 

“Ah ah,” the voice taunted. “No name calling now. Or else.” 

The threat hung in the air.

“Let me speak to him.” she whispered. 

There was a moment of oddly static air, then a click, then she heard laboured breathing. 

“Luke?” she asked.

“Rey….?” his voice replied incredulously. “Rey are you ok?” 

She almost laughed aloud.

“Am _I_ ok?” she half sobbed. “Where are you?!” 

“No no.” the monstrous voice said. “No telling. Or we’ll kill him now and we may never even tell you where to start _looking_ for the pieces.” 

“Rey…” Luke interrupted the voice. “Is Iz ok? Are you ok? Have they hurt you?”

She shook her head, clinging to the phone as if it were her husband himself instead of just his voice.

“No. We’re fine. We’re fine baby. Oh god…..” 

“Sweetheart….” Luke coughed suddenly, his voice sounding thick and haggard. “I love you. If anything happens. No matter what, I love-”

There was a sound like meat hitting a table, a soft grunt, and then a loud thud. She could hear someone swearing and the organic sound of blows landing on unprotected flesh filled her ears for a few seconds. 

“Luke?! LUKE!?!” she almost screamed.

“He’s alive.” the voice came back, sounding bored. “For now, at least.” 

“What do you _want_!?” Rey demanded, fury rising within her.

Another long pause.

“What makes you think we _want_ anything?” the voice laughed.

There was a click and the line went dead. Rey felt herself grow woozy as shock set in. 

“Rey what happened?! Who was that? I thought I could hear-”

“They’ve got Luke.” Rey said dully. “I’m not positive who, but they’ve got Luke…. It’s got to be Kylo, hasn’t it?” 

She dropped her phone in her lap; almost the moment she did it rang again and Leia grabbed it, barking a “Hello” into it.

“Yes, this is Detective Batten-”

“Ress?” Leia said incredulously. “It’s Leia.”

There was a perplexed pause.

“Leia Organa?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry, I was trying to reach a Mrs Rey Skywalker?”

“She’s my sister in law. I answered her phone. Have you arrived at the cottage?”

Again a pause.

“We have. We’ve walked the property and are unable to locate anyone; the lab’s collecting evidence right now.”

“We should be there in a few minutes. We had to drop my niece off with my husband.”

“Yes ma’am. We’ll be here.”

She hung up, letting the phone fall into her lap as she tightened her grip on the steering wheel.

*&^%$%^&*

Luke tried to concentrate on the memory of the sound of Rey’s voice and not the throbbing pain of his bruised face. A line of blood and saliva dripped from his split lower lip. He spat out a mouthful of blood and what felt like part of a tooth and stared balefully up at his abuser. Kylo wiped his soiled leather glove on a towel, sneering down at his uncle as he perused a table of instruments best called “surgical”.

“Don’t you ever know when to quit, kid?” Luke said tiredly.

Kylo picked up a baton of blackened steel, examined it for a moment and then swung it to his side, making it extend to a full two feet long. Luke didn’t flinch as the baton was drawn back.

“Didn’t you ever learn not to play with other people’s _things_ , Uncle?” the dark haired man hissed. “She was _mine_ , by all rights she was _MINE_!”

The blow stung, catching him hard across the side of his head. Luke’s vision went blurry and he felt himself begin to lose consciousness.

“You know, Ren.” a voice piped up from the dark corner. “If you really want to make him suffer, you might avoid just beating him about the head repeatedly. You’ll kill him before you’ve really gotten your kicks out of him.”

Luke recognised the voice as belonging to the weaselly faced Armitage Hux. No help lay therein. He was going to have to try and get out of this himself. Or else die in the process. He thought about Rey and the baby. Thought about all the things he wanted to teach little Izzy, all the places he wanted to show his family and show them _off_. He wasn’t going to die before he got to see Rey’s face in person again. He wouldn’t allow it. No matter what his arrogant little shitstain of a nephew did to him. 

“You might just be right, Hux.” Kylo was saying as Luke returned to himself.

He saw Kylo return to the table, gloved fingers dancing over his collection of “toys”. A heartbeat later he winced, a ribbon of hot pain lancing across his chest as something with tiny metal teeth lashed across his torso. 

 

“So you _can_ feel pain, Uncle.” Luke heard his nephew say. “That’s good to know…. Not to worry. There will be pain far _worse_ than this before I’m through.”

A few more blows were dealt and this time Luke tried to calm and centre himself, telling his mind to go into hiding and to remain there for the duration. When he allowed it to return, Luke was discomfited to see that his nephew’s face was speckled with blood. _His_ blood. Luke didn’t bother to look down at himself to see the damage; he could feel the dull ache becoming a firey burn as his body registered the wounds that had been opened up on his skin.

Finally, something hard hit the back of his head and everything went dark. 

*&^%$%^&*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :: dodging tomatoes and torches ::


	9. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Family isn't always blood.

Leia pulled up and parked the car on the side of the road outside the Skywalker house, the driveway already full of cop cars and looky-loos. Rey got out and leaned against the car, covering her face with her shaking hands. Gently, Leia drew her hands away from her face and pulled her sister in law in tight for a fierce embrace.

“I’ve got your back, Rey.” she said softly. 

Rey squeezed her back, nodding as they struck out towards the house. Her stomach dropped as she noticed the front door had been forced open. What if BeBe had gotten out?! She heard a distressed meow and was relieved to see the anxious cat secured in a carrier. 

“Oh thank god…” she breathed, hurrying to the officer beginning to load BeBe into a van. 

“This your cat, Ma’am?” the young man asked. 

She nodded, poking her fingers through the bars and smiling as BeBe rubbed her cheek along her owner’s digits. 

“She nearly blinded my partner when we broke in.” the officer said reproachfully.

“She doesn’t like strangers in her home…” Rey said softly, still stroking what she could reach of the cat. “I know the feeling…”

“Mrs Skywalker?” a female voice inquired from behind her.

Rey turned to find a stern faced older woman about Leia’s age giving her an appraising look. 

“Yes. I’m Mrs Skywalker. I’m the one who called.” Rey said, somewhat indignantly.

The skeptical look changed to one of vague surprise. 

“I’m Detective Batten, we spoke on the phone. We’ve checked the premises and unsurprisingly, no one is here and no one saw saw anything. Your neighbors seemed to be pretty oblivious. You said you haven’t heard from your husband for a few hours now?”

“Yes…. He stayed home sick today.”

Batten paused for a moment.

“Is there any chance your husband might have left of his own accord?” 

The look Rey gave the police-woman could have melted steel. Leia spoke up before murder was done.

“None whatsoever.”

Something in her told her not to share the terrifying phone call Rey had received with Batten. Leia stood closer to Rey, intertwining her arm with Rey’s. Batten seemed to sense that there was more to the story than she was being told, but Leia resolutely kept her mouth shut. She was not about to endanger her brother’s life any further. She and Rey answered a few more questions Detective Batten had for them, gratefully avoiding having to re-enter the house as they were summarily dismissed with a promise to get in touch as soon as there was any news as well as the cat carrier in which BeBe sat mewing piteously.

Leia didn’t ask Rey what she wanted to do, she just made the journey back to her’s and Han’s home on the bluff in silence. Her stomach tightened with every mile they drove and, by the time she’d pulled into her own driveway, she was fit to bursting. She kept herself under wraps, knowing that if she lost it, Rey would lose it too. 

Han came out onto the porch, brow furrowed as a silent Rey was guided into the house. Han took over, guiding an unresisting Rey into the guest room her daughter was already asleep in and placing the cat carrier on the floor, letting the poor anxious BeBe out as soon as Rey had sat down on the side of the bed. He pulled her boots off, tucking her in next to Isobel and idly stroking her hair. 

“We’re gonna find him, kid.” he murmured quietly, pulling the blanket over her shoulder.

He padded back out to the porch where Leia stood leaning heavily against the baulestrade, one hand covering her face. Han didn’t speak, only wrapped his arms around his wife and pulling her in tight.

“Han…” her voice cracked. “What if we don’t find him? What if we’re too late already?” 

“If it is Kylo…. He’ll keep Luke alive. For a while at least.” Han said darkly.

Leia let out a shuddering sigh, her fingers fisting in the fabric of Han’s shirt. She craned her neck to look up at him, eyes glistening both with tears and determination. 

“We’ve _got_ to find him, Han.” 

Han nodded, releasing his grip on her. 

“I’ll get in touch with Lando… maybe he knows where we could start.” Han looked suddenly uncomfortable. “Isn’t that hearing about Izzy soon?” 

She pursed her lips, crossing her arms and nodding.

“Unfortunately yes. Two days from now.”

“Damn…. Is she gonna be ok for it?” 

Leia peered into the house where her sister by marriage and in heart lay sleeping beside Luke’s only child. Her jaw clenched.

“She’s going to have to be.”

*&^%$#@#$%^&*

When Rey awoke twelve hours later, the house was silent. Izzy, by some miracle, remained asleep as her mother rose and crossed to the window. The sun was just coming up and Rey padded silently into the kitchen, fixing herself a cup of tea and going out onto the back porch. Han and Leia’s house was one of the few places she felt truly at home. BeBe had snuck out of the bedroom behind her and followed her onto the porch, jumping up and curling up next to Rey as she sat down in her usual spot on the porch swing. She gazed out at the harbour, sipping her tea as her brain worked to process yesterday’s events. 

Her dreams had been full of blood and death; her mind had conjured up images of a broken and bleeding Luke, a Luke long since dead before she’d even found him, Kylo’s blood sprayed face sneering at her as he hissed hatefully at her. _This is what you’ve done. This is what you DESERVE. You should have just stayed._

Now in the morning light, she felt her resolve hardening, her anger becoming flame which powered her determination that not only was she going to defeat this man who had tried so hard to destroy everything good in her life, but that she would _thrive_ at the end of it all. She reached out to stroke BeBe, the orange and white cat arching into her touch. 

“This will end eventually, BeBe.” she murmured to the purring cat. “We’re going to all go home and be happy again at the end of this.” 

“That’s what I want to hear.” Leia’s voice said from the doorway.

Rey looked up, smiling at the sleep-mussed older woman who stood nursing an enourmous mug of coffee.

“You and Han have been such a support for so long…. Are you sure you want to keep having to pick up my messes?” Rey inquired.

Leia took a seat on the other side of BeBe, making a pleased face as she took another sip of coffee. 

“Hon, I’m always going to be here to help clean up family messes. As long as I am able.”

Rey gave her a small smile, lifting her feet up and propping them up on the table. Leia followed suit and they sat there in quietude until the sun had fully risen, enjoying the moment of calm before the Skywalker women prepared for battle.

*&^%$#$%^&*


	10. Chapter Ten

_Blackness. Pain. Hard floors. Rough handling. Zip ties tight around his wrists. ___

___His ears were popping and he couldn’t swallow or yawn hard enough to even out the pressure. Pain in his arms as they were wrenched back. More pain as something sharp punctured his inner elbow. An attempt to cry out. Dirty tasting something shoved into his mouth as whatever had been injected into him made his body first very hot, then cold…__ _

___Choking. Fighting for breath. The mucus in his chest making his short breaths even shorter. Feeling himself go limp. Someone shouting as hands grabbed him, pulled him, yanked him upright. Then blinding light. Then a rag over his nose and mouth. A sharp, acrid scent as the rag was held there as he attempted to struggle. Then blackness again.__ _

___**Rey….**__ _

__* &^%$#$%^&*_ _

__Rey sat on the hard wooden bench, her fingers clenched around Izzy’s arms. The girl seemed to understand that the situation was very serious and made no efforts to squirm of try to get out of her mother’s lap. The pair were bracketed on the bench by a sour faced Han and an absolutely livid looking Leia._ _

__Her stomach clenched as the family court judge exited his chambers and glanced down benevolently at the court. Rey’s eyes searched the assembled families in search of the ink-stain that had tarnished her life since the day she’d met him. Kylo was nowhere to be seen._ _

__“Case 3789 stroke 4, Ren V Skywalker?”_ _

__Rey stood up, trying not to shake as she approached the judge, her daughter’s hand in hers. Still, she did not see Kylo._ _

__“Mrs Skywalker?” the balding older man said, looking over the tops of his glasses at her._ _

__“Yes sir.”_ _

__He peered around her._ _

__“Is the opposing party not here? Or a representative?”_ _

__She couldn’t speak. A voice suddenly spoke out behind her, nearly making her jump out of her skin._ _

__“I am here representing my Grandson’s interests.” a cold voice said._ _

__Rey heard a gasp and turned to see Leia, mouth slightly ajar and hands automatically clenched against her chest as an exceptionally tall, immaculately dressed older man strolled up to the judge’s bench. Though she had never met him, Rey recognised him right away. The cruel, piercing gaze was unmistakable. She could almost see a resemblance to Luke and Leia there in the lined face that now faced the judge. His eyes were a shade or two darker than her husband’s but they held none of the kindness and gentility of Luke Skywalker._ _

__“Anakin Skywalker. Here to make sure my great-grandchild is provided with the _exceptional_ care she deserves.” he said, directing his comments towards the judge and ignoring both Rey and Izzy’s presence. _ _

__The judge gave him a rather startled look._ _

__“This is most irregular, Mr Skywalker.”_ _

__“You will find the adjustments to the previous filings on these papers, sir.” the old man handed over a small stapled stack of paper to the judge’s assistant._ _

__Rey suddenly found her voice as the judge perused the document he’d been handed._ _

__“You can’t possibly mean to give over custody of _my daughter_ to the man who abused me and tried to murder my husband.” she said, trying her damndest to keep her anger in check. It would not do to upset the legal system that held so much power over her and her child’s well-being._ _

__“Well, Mrs Skywalker.” the judge started, looking uncomfortable. “That would seem to be precisely what this document is in reference to…. In the event that the paternity of your child is indeed proven and the results state that Mr Ren is the father… This document authorises Mr Anakin Skywalker to take over custody as long as Mr Ren is not available or deemed an acceptable or viable custodian by the state.”_ _

__Rey’s heart dropped into her stomach. Anakin gave her a small, satisfied smile, tilting his head slightly as he stared at her. She tightened her arms around her daughter, fighting not to scream or cry._ _

__“What do I have to do to prove that Kylo Ren has no claim to _my_ child.”_ _

__“Well given that the purported father seems to have run off without a trace…. It would seem there’s some truth to the accusation.” Anakin drawled lazily._ _

__Rey flushed angrily red and clenched her teeth tightly together._ _

__“Mr Skywalker, please.” the judge snapped. “That was exceptionally uncalled for. I will now have this in my court. Mrs Skywalker, the results of the first paternity test indicated-”_ _

__“Isobel is Luke’s daughter and there is no way a paternity test would say otherwise unless it has been tampered with.” Rey said tightly._ _

__“I resent the implication that-” Anakin started._ _

__“I don’t care what you resent, sir. I know Kylo far better than you and I know what he is capable of.” Rey said sharply. “I demand a second test. A third as well if we need to.”_ _

__The judge seemed remarkably uncomfortable._ _

__“Very well. If you are determined, the court would be happy to order another genetic testing-”_ _

__“My grandson has made provisions for any amount of test fees that need to be paid. We would be more than happy to assist Mrs Skywalker in obtaining additional testing. In fact we have access to the premiere genetic testing lab-” Anakin started._ _

__A fourth voice interrupted the discourse._ _

__“No!”_ _

__All three turned to see Leia standing up, her face a mask of anger._ _

__“Your honour, may I approach?” she asked, putting on her lawyer voice._ _

__“Mrs Skywalker, do you know this woman?” the judge asked, a little taken aback._ _

__“She’s my sister in law.”_ _

__“And legal counsel. Sir. If you please.” Leia said firmly._ _

__The grey haired man behind the bench nodded and Leia stalked forward, positioning herself between Rey and her father. Rey wasn’t too blinded by her own anxiety and upset to miss how Leia’s body tensed up beside her as she found herself in the presence of her childhood abuser._ _

__“We would prefer to have the genetic testing done by a company _not_ directly in the pay of my client’s ex.” Leia continued coolly. “We will, of course, be happy to pay for any costs incurred.”_ _

__Anakin looked rattled, opening his mouth as if to protest before eventually letting it shut. Anger flashed in his eyes as Leia reached out for Rey’s hand. The two women held hands, Leia squeezing Rey’s hand gently as they grounded and calmed each other._ _

__“Very well Mrs Skywalker. Mrs….?”_ _

__“Solo.”_ _

__“Mrs Solo. We will arrange a second blood test with an outside lab and reconvene after the results have been acquired.”_ _

__He banged his gavel and Rey and Leia quickly retreated from the courtroom. As they hurried out into the hallway to gather themselves. The door that had shut behind them opened again and Rey was angered to see Anakin walk through at a leisurely pace, his long black coat elegantly draped around him as he rearranged the silk scarf around his neck._ _

__“Well, well, Leia.” he said in a honied voice. “It _has_ been a long time.”_ _

__Leia stiffened and Rey immediately thrust herself between her sister-in-law and her apparent Father-in-law._ _

__“I don’t know what he’s told you or what’s going on in his twisted little mind-” Rey snarled._ _

__“She does have her father’s eyes, doesn’t she?” Anakin interrupted, crouching as much as his body would let him to inspect the toddler now peeking from behind her mother’s legs. “Yes… the same defiance…. The same innocence….”_ _

__“I’m not going to let you get away with this.” Leia burst out from behind Rey’s shoulder._ _

__Anakin glanced lazily at her._ _

__“My dear child…. We already have.”_ _

__He reached out, managing to tweak Izzy’s chubby cheek before he stood and strolled away. Once he’d disappeared from view, Leia sagged and Rey quickly embraced her._ _

__“I’m not gonna let him take your baby, Rey. I won’t let him.” Leia whispered even as she clung to the younger woman._ _

__Rey could only nod, clinging to Leia with equal fervor._ _

__“Let’s go home.”_ _

__* &^%$#$%^&* _ _

__As he stepped outside, Anakin withdrew his phone, selecting a number from his contacts list. Lifting it to his ear, he waited a few moments. The phone was answered on the second ring._ _

__“We have a problem. They’ve challenged the paternity test. They’re having a second test done and I don’t think we’ll be able to affect the results of that one the way we were able to with the initial test.”_ _

__There was a pause on the other end of the line._ _

__“Very well… We’ll have to up the ante then. The car will be at the agreed upon place to take you to the airstrip. Don’t bother sticking around. We’ll need plausible deniability. I shall see you soon, Grandfather.”_ _

__The phone clicked off and Anakin gazed up at the sky for a moment. The afternoon was growing late and he felt the familiar sensation that had begun to come on earlier and earlier in the day the older he got. It was like a fog that settled slowly over his brain the later in the day it got. He glanced down at his liver-spotted hands and noted that they trembled slightly. It was a damned life to watch oneself literally and figuratively lose control of one’s faculties. He walked at a leisurely pace around the block, finding the sleek black BMW in the location he’d expected to find it._ _

__A black suited and sun-glasses wearing man opened the door for the Skywalker patriarch and he slid inside the dark interior of the car, allowing himself to be whisked away, his duty done for the day._ _

__* &^%$%^&*_ _


	11. Chapter Eleven

As Luke regained consciousness, he really wished he hadn’t. Disoriented, he found himself shackled at both ankles and throat. The chains attaching him to the small, steel framed camp bed with its thin mattress and threadbare sheet were heavy and cold against his skin. He could see that “provisions” had been brought while he was out. How long he had been out, he had no idea. He gathered it had been a while and also that he’d been injected with something. Multiple times judging by the fact his inner elbow and forearm looked like an addict’s. 

A bucket was chained to the wall with just enough links to be moved but not to be used as any kind of weapon, a plastic milk jug of grey looking water sat on the rickety table beside the bed and what appeared to be a loaf of expired bread sat beside that. Luke pulled his knees up to his chest, sitting with his back against the riveted steel hull of his father’s boat. A boat he knew well but had no fond memories of. Judging by the gnawing feeling in his belly, he suspected he’d been out for more than a few hours. With no windows and a shadowed doorway, he had no way to tell what time of day it was or where the boat now lay at anchor. Despite the cold of the room, his cheeks felt hot and he knew he was running a higher fever than he’d had at home. 

The little miracle was that it seemed to have been a while since Kylo decided to “punish” him for winning Rey’s affections. The bruises seemed to have faded slightly and his cuts were starting to heal. Perhaps Kylo had realised how mad his attack on his uncle had seemed. Perhaps he could be made to see reason. 

By day three, he was too weak to even attempt to fight if Hux had come to drag him away for another “session”. He’d avoided the ‘provisions’ left as long as possible in case they’d been tampered with but in the end, his sandpaper tongue and aching belly won out. The mouth of the water jug scraped against his cracked lips, making them bleed as he carefully took a cautious sip. It tasted metallic, but there wasn’t anything immediately obviously wrong with it. 

By day four he _knew_ there had had to be **something** in the water. Logically, he knew he had to be hallucinating: boats didn’t sink and then unsink. Certainly not several times an hour. Nevertheless the terror overtook him each time his mind convinced him he was about to drown. 

“ _Luke…._ ” the voice came whispering in like fog under a door. 

_Rey’s_ voice. Luke blinked, straining to hear it again. If he could just get to her. If he could just _find_ her. Everything would be ok. 

“ _Daddy?!_ ” 

His eyes searched frantically. Had Kylo actually captured the two people Luke cared most about in the world? Were they really here? Time didn’t move properly; it bent and stretched and contorted until he had no concept of how long he’d been captive. It could be a few days or a few years for all he knew. Luke’s eyes travelled over the room that had become his cell, the room that _could_ become his tomb. **Wall. Corner. Door. Closet. Wall. Corner. Door. Closet.** There was no place for his beloved wife to remain hidden. There was no place Izzy could be concealed. Blinking back tears he hadn’t been aware were welling in his eyes, he lay back down on the thin mattress atop the metal bedframe and attempted to stop his world from careening out of control.

On the sixth day, Hux came to collect him, marching him blindfolded up stairs and through corridors. Luke did his best to try to take in everything he could, to try to figure out _where_ exactly he was, but all he could discern was the smell of the ocean and an all pervading reek of mold and mildew.

Kylo seemed angry about something but Luke remained mute as his nephew stalked around him. He could hear the sound of Kylo’s shoes on the floor and he tensed his body in preparation for any attack. Only once Kylo had gotten a few blows in did they remove the dirty rag keeping him blind. The beating continued until Luke could do little but lie there, taking each kick and punch.

Luke drifted in and out of consciousness, time seeming to slow down and speed up. Thanking whoever was listening that _this time_ had been a comparably light beating compared to Kylo’s initial explosion of rage.

“Take him below to his lodgings.” Kylo snapped at the irritated Hux, who huffed angrily and shoved Luke to his feet. “And not to worry, Uncle.” he grabbed Luke by the hair, forcing his head painfully back. “I’m going to take _good_ care of Rey after all this is over. She’ll have no _choice_ but to accept me once I’m finished with the two of you and that bastard of a child.”

Hux dragged Luke away, guiding him down a dank and moldy smelling hallway. Luke looked around himself, taking in every detail in case something could be used to get himself out of this horrible situation he was in. In shock, he realised he recognised the vessel from his childhood. The _Frau Toddestern_. His father’s boat. 

*&^%$#@#$%^&*

Leia took Rey and Izzy together to get bloodwork done. Rey went first, sitting with her daughter in her lap as Leia watched, hawkeyed for every move the technician made. Izzy was remarkably quiet when her blood was drawn. The events of the past few weeks had confused and upset her, but Leia and Rey had worked hard to make sure she was comfortable and knew she was loved.

As the tech finished up and stood, he was startled to find Leia standing with him. She glowered up at him menacingly. 

“Now you listen to me, son.” she said in a low but dangerous voice. “If those vials don’t make it safely and _untampered_ with to their destination along with the hair sample we brought in, you’re gonna have a _hell_ of a time ever finding anything more lucrative than a janatorial position. I don’t care what Kylo Ren or First Order Enterprises told you or how much they paid. _I _will make you pay if that test shows anything other than the truth. Do you understand me.”__

__The bewildered looking tech nodded nervously, securing the vials and hurrying away. Leia turned to her sister-in-law and gave her a smile._ _

__“Hopefully that put the fear of god into them.” she said, reaching out to stroke her niece’s hair._ _

__“Well it certainly put the fear of _you_ into them.” Rey replied, amused._ _

__“Me…. God…. Same difference.” Leia chuckled with a mock-haughty look._ _

__That evening they returned to the Solo residence for a quiet dinner. Rey and Izzy were put to bed in one of the guest rooms, Rey falling asleep with her snoring daughter in the crook of her arm. She gazed at her daughter in the semi-darkness, noticing for the first time the little bits of similarities of features her child shared with Luke. She blinked back tears. _No. Crying won’t help. He’s out there somewhere. I’d know if he were…._ _ _

__A mutinous tear escaped and slid down over her cheek. Then another. And another. She forced her eyes shut and turned her face into the pillow, muffling her light gasps with the slightly musty smelling fabric. _Luke. Come home.__ _

__* &^%$%^&*_ _

__He’d finally discerned that it was evening when Hux had opened the door, seemingly to check in on him and he’d glimpsed a night sky. Long after he’d heard Hux’s bootheels click away, Luke heard an awkward pair of footsteps descending into the room he was being kept. He didn’t bother to sit up this time, keeping his back to the interloper as he heard the light splash of feet in the few inches of bilge that covered the floor._ _

__“Are you….Are you the prisoner?” an elderly and shaking voice asked._ _

__He stiffened immediately at the familiarity of that voice. Never before had he heard it so weak and so unsure, but there was no mistaking the voice of the man who had raged and beaten and screamed and abused his way through Luke and Leia’s childhood. Luke turned slowly, the chains around his neck and ankles clinking together as he rolled over on the thin mattress to face his father._ _

__The old man stood hunched and trembling, a shadow of his former self. His liver-spotted hands shook as he held them in front of himself as if about to ask a question he suspected the answer to which would be no._ _

__“Yeah.” Luke said. “I guess you could say that.”_ _

__He revealed himself to the man fully, putting himself in as much light as the dim overhead bulbs allowed. Anakin Skywalker did not at first appear to recognise his son._ _

__“They said…. They said you were a bad man.” the Skywalker patriarch said quaveringly. “They said…. They said you were one who had…. Had hurt children. Had taken advantage of children. Is this true?”_ _

__Luke chuckled, the sound was bitter and hoarse, almost wet sounding as the mucus in his chest made it harder to force sound out._ _

__“If you can’t recognise me…. Then it isn’t going to matter what I say.”_ _

__“Recognise….?” the elderly man said, peering at Luke through rheumy reddened eyes. “Your eyes…..”_ _

__Anakin’s eyes widened after a long moment, finally seeming to see through the bruises and cuts and stubble._ _

__“Luke..?” Anakin breathed in shock and dismay._ _

__Luke staggered back under the weight of his chains, sitting down heavily on the bed as the world suddenly spun before him._ _

__“My son…”_ _

__“Yeah. So it would seem.” Luke replied dully, concentrating on breathing as the combination of sickness and restraint collar impeded his breathing._ _

__“Are you what they say you are?”_ _

__Luke looked up sharply, hatred flashing in his eyes._ _

__“Of course not. Those crimes, those were all things you would have happily done.” Luke snapped with as much vigor as he could manage._ _

__The elderly creature before him recoiled as if slapped. For a moment, Anakin drew himself up and Luke had to stifle a child’s instinctual desire to cower in terror from the raised hand he knew was coming._ _

__“Insolence!” the voice was stronger now. The blow, however, was not._ _

__He caught his father’s wrist easily, shoving it and him away with an overpowering feeling of disgust. The effort made black spots prickle in the corner of his vision and he sat back, breathing heavily._ _

__“It’s not insolence, Father.” he said as forcefully as his body would allow him. “I’m not a child anymore. You can’t cow me with threats any longer. You can’t threaten harm to Leia as leverage against me any longer. She is _far_ away and safe from you.”_ _

__Anakin made a throaty scoffing noise._ _

__“With that fisherman of hers? She’ll be back…. They always come back…. Always come back…..”_ _

__Luke looked at his father in dawning realisation; the elder Skywalker was only halfway lucid. He wasn’t sure whether this made him hate the man more or less, but it did change things somewhat._ _

__“We’re grown, Father. We’re grown with children of our own now. Leia’s child is grown up. But surely you know that. Why else would I have been brought here? To this ship which brought me nothing but pain.” he shuddered. “The things you made me watch you do…”_ _

__“Kylo….”_ _

__“Yes, your grandson. And aren’t you proud of him? Following in _exactly_ your footsteps. He’s modeled his cruelty after yours, you know. There’s a feather in your cap to be sure.” Luke said with all the sarcasm his tired body could muster._ _

__“I-I don’t…”_ _

__“Surely you must have pride; your grandson is exactly the monster you were to your children. Leia and I learned from your mistakes, but perhaps it skips a generation.”_ _

__Anakin stepped back again, almost to the door. He gave Luke an indescribable look, something akin to horror, as he fled on shuffling feet from the dank bilges in which Luke was kept. Luke eased himself down onto the mattress, closing his eyes and attempting to make sense of the situation._ _

___"Rey…. Izzy…. I’m going to come home to you. I’m going to. I’m….._ _ _

__* &^%$%^&*_ _


	12. Chapter 12

Rey marked the coming and going of another week. A week spent without her husband. A week spent not knowing where he was or if he was alive, though she maintained that she’d just _know_ if he’d been killed. A week she and Izzy had spent as the guests of their attentive and equally worried family. As the weekend came and went and another Monday began, Rey and Leia anxiously awaited the results of the blood test and subsequent next court date. The results were to be read in court and they wouldn’t know until then that they’d managed to avoid any kind of corruption from Kylo Ren’s interfering influence.

Her anxiety had been ramped up to eleven as she stood with Leia and her daughter before the same man who’d delivered the shocking news previously. He opened a brown paper envelope, sliding out a single sheet of paper and looking it over dispassionately. He gave a small humorless smile and turned his attention to the two women and the little girl between them. Neither Anakin Skywalker nor Kylo Ren was anywhere to be seen in the courtroom. This puzzled and alarmed Rey for some reason. There was a nondescript looking man in a well fitting black suit who stood motionlessly outside the bounds of the gate. 

“Mrs Skywalker. It would seem we owe you an apology, as these test results indicate you were indeed in the right. According to the two independent companies hired to run these genetic tests, you and Mr Luke Skywalker are indeed the natural biological parents of Isobel Skywalker.” he looked a little shamefaced. “I must admit I was fooled by the prior results. I will be informing the appropriate parties of the unreliable results of the company utilised by Mr Ren.”

Rey nodded shortly, running a hand fitfully through Isobel’s hair. 

“If there’s nothing else…?” the judge continued. “You’re free to go, with the court’s apologies.”

*&^%$#$%^&*

A nameless man stood halfway up an alley, his cellphone pressed to his ear.

“Yes. We were unable to intercept the samples. The tests were performed and were conclusive. I’m afraid we did not get the verdict we had hoped for.” the man said, his voice emotionless and flat. “How would you like us to proceed.”

He was silent for a moment. Then nodded, replied in the affirmative, and dropped the phone to the ground, stomping on it until there was nothing left but shards of glass and computer chips.

*&^%$%^&*

“Are you quite sure you don’t want to stay with us a while longer?” Leia asked tentatively, looking around at the darkened house. 

Rey nodded. 

“It’s not that I don’t appreciate everything you’ve done, but Izzy needs a little bit of normalcy in her life.”

“Understandable…. But… Rey, are you sure?” Leia’s face was filled with concern.

The younger woman gave her a sad smile. 

“Yeah. We’ll be ok. I promise, I’ll call you if anything changes. Finn and Poe are supposed to be by later.” she laughed lightly. “When I told Poe I was planning to come back he about screamed my ear off. Finn only got him to stop yelling when I agreed they could stay over a few nights.” 

Still unconvinced but knowing that Rey was just as stubborn as her husband, Leia nodded in capitulation and sighed.

“Alright. Alright… Keep updating the group chat. At least keep us in the loop if anything happens…” 

Rey agreed, kissing her sister-in-law’s cheek and squeezing her hand affectionately. Leia swung Izzy up into her arms for a ferocious snuggle and a kiss to both the little girl’s sticky cheeks.

“You look after your mummy, Iz, ok?” Leia ordered the toddler. “I love you both.”

Isobel giggled and nodded; Leia lowered her back to the ground and fixed Rey with a piercing look.

“For real. You had better call me if _anything_ out of the ordinary happens. Kylo is not just going to let us win this easily.” 

After a final goodbye and promise to keep in touch, Leia departed, leaving Rey and Isobel to enter the house alone. 

The entire building felt cold and dark and for a moment, Rey regretted her decision to return without Luke. She flipped on the lights, chasing away the shadows but not the sense of dread and foreboding she felt being back. Her eyes drifted to the closed bedroom door and her stomach tightened as if she expected to throw open that door and find the decomposing corpse of her husband. 

“Are you hungry, Iz?” Rey asked her daughter.

The child nodded vaguely, wandering into the bedroom she had not seen in two weeks. Rey tentatively opened the refrigerator, wrinkling her nose at the spoiled food and out of date leftovers. 

“Takeout it is then.”

As she picked up her phone, there was a knock at the door. Rey crossed to open it and found her two best friends in the world. 

“Hi honey, we’re home!” Poe said jovially, bustling her aside as they entered with sleeping bags and backpacks. 

Finn followed him inside, plopping a bag of Chinese takeout down on the counter and enfolding Rey in a tight hug.

“Any news?” he asked quietly as Poe stowed their bags in the living room.

Rey shook her head. 

“Izzy, Uncle Poe and Uncle Finn are here.” she called out.

The toddler came running and Poe caught her up in his arms, swinging her around before situating her on his hip. 

“Whaddaya think, Iz? Shrimp fried rice and Disney movies?” he asked, tweaking her chin.

She bounced happily and Rey watched as Poe and Finn fell immediately into a mavouvre of almost military precision, retrieving plates and utensils and dishing out food onto plates. Poe located Izzy’s plastic dishes with the separate sections as well as her Little Mermaid sippy-cup. Ten minutes later they were all situated around the TV as Finn cued up the latest straight-to-Netflix Disney fairy movie. Though her heart ached for the hole left in this cozy setting by her missing husband, Rey was eternally grateful to her friends for returning some semblance of normality to her’s and her daughter’s lives. 

Rey had herself almost drifted off to sleep when Finn carried Isobel off to the bathroom, helping the child brush her teeth and change into pajamas before bringing her to her bedroom. Poe had hold of Rey’s feet in his lap and was rubbing them idly.

“I don’t deserve you guys.” Rey said softly, tilting her head to look at the dark haired man.

Poe grinned at her, tickling the bottom of her foot lightly. She squirmed and let out a squeak of distress.

“Listen, if we aren’t all helping each other out, what kind of family would we be?” 

“I mean, you’re right. I just mean that I’m not sure of many families who would take it upon themselves to give each other foot-rubs.” Rey laughed.

“Hey, every little gesture helps.” Poe said stubbornly. “Just don’t ask Finn to do it. He has a thing with feet. Can’t stand ‘em.” 

“That was two-thirds of a pun, Poe.” Rey smirked, reaching out at twirling a glossy black comma of fringe from her friend’s forehead.

He winked, then his expression drooped slightly.

“Are you sleeping in Izzy’s room or…..” 

Her eyes darted again to the closed door of her’s and Luke’s bedroom.

“Izzy’s room. I can’t….”

“Gotcha. We brought an extra sleeping bag. If you want, tomorrow we can call a cleaner and Finn and I can see exactly what the damage is if you don’t want to deal with it.”

She sighed, closing her eyes and smiling at the ceiling.

“What would I do without my boys?”

*&^%$##$%^&*

Of all the things Kylo had subjected Luke to so far, the waterboarding was the worst. It wasn’t just the fact he was undergoing torture. Or even that he was being tortured by his own blood (though for part of this exchange, Hux had been ordered to partake of the activity). He’d long ago accepted that something in Ben was horrifically damaged beyond repair. No, it wasn’t the fact that he’d been taken away and subjected to pain he’d never considered he’d have to endure, it was that the substance he felt most comfortable with had been turned against him. Every diver, swimmer, and ocean or beach enthusiast has his or her own unique but relatable story of near drowning. Every diver who’s experienced the bends and still comes out of the experience loving every violent wave and roughly treacherous undertow will say the same thing: the ocean cares not for you, but it is not cruel or revengeful; it does not seek to harm nor to punish. It does not care for the beings that inhabit it nor the beings that invade it, but it will test those who are not ever ready for its challenges.

As cold, salty water poured into his throat and sinuses, Luke endeavored not to hate the ocean from which the water had been scooped. The ocean he’d felt drawn to ever since he was a child. The ocean he’d found peace and contentment in despite its unpredictability. He gasped and choked as the liquid obstructed his airways. When, after excruciating minutes, it finally subsided, he looked up into the smirking face of his nephew. He hated how much the man doing this to him looked like Han. He hated how the vicious curl of the man’s lips mirrored his father’s roguish smirk when he knew a plan would unfold his way. Luke gasped for breath, finally able to draw a full breath for the first time in what felt like hours but was probably minutes. Saltwater poured out of his mouth and he coughed and gagged on it. The salt made his eyes burn and his sinuses ache. 

For a moment there was sweet, blissful blackness, then there was a sharp smack to his face. When his vision cleared, he found himself back on his cot. Hux’s paper white face was hovering above him, something like pity in his gaze. 

“You know he means to kill you?” 

Luke chuckled wetly, struggling for breath.

“Are you stupid?” he bit out. “He’s tried twice before, of course I know that…” 

Hux chewed his lip, fidgeting with the ring of keys he held. 

“I do this not out of dislike, Mr Skywalker.” the ginger haired man said haltingly.

Luke gave a derisive snort, immediately regretting such a violent gesture as pain radiated through his head.

“I do what my employer asks of me.” Hux continued. “He has asked me to do reprehensible acts before but….” 

“He’s never asked you to kill a man?”

 

Hux was silent for a long moment, his worrying of the keys increasing.

“Indeed… I have been… _assigned_ to Ren for a long time now. I knew he was twisted…. I never realised he was capable…. I never thought….”

“Well I suppose there’s a first time for everything.” Luke replied tiredly, leaning back against the wall. “And Kylo has long gotten away with crimes that would have put others away for years… God… He must think he’s untouchable at this point…”

The slender man edged away from Luke’s prone form, still staring at his prisoner. Consternation and conflict was etched upon his hawk-like features as he silently fled the room. Back on deck, the smell of mould and mildew still hung heavy in the air, but it was lessened by the soft sea breeze that played around Hux’s body. His brow furrowed as he fought to make sense of the confused thoughts running through his mind. 

Pity was a weakness. Sympathy and empathy were weaknesses. Power was only given to those who fought for it. Skywalker was weak. Skywalker was _weak_! He had orders. He had responsibilities! He…. As he remembered Skywalker’s broken and unconscious murmurings, his repeated calls to his far away wife and child, he knew he would be unable to watch Kylo Ren commit a murder. Even he was shocked by the depth of Ren’s rage and violence. To be sure, the dark haired man had always had a predilection for cruelty, but Hux found it more than a little shocking the absolute _depth_ to which he’d sunk in his quest to punish Rey. 

Regardless of what he’d been ordered to do or not, he could not stand by and be party to murder. Something would have to be done. His concern lay just as much in preserving his own hide and making sure murder was not done. Hux headed toward the back of the boat and to his quarters therein, eager for the mindlessness of sleep.

*&^%$#$%^&*

Lazy trails of cigar smoke trailed from the end of a delicious smelling Cuban cigar. Kylo sat across from his grandfather, a look of almost reverence upon his fine features as Anakin twisted the cigar idly between his finger.

“Everything has gone according to plan, so far.” Kylo said, with all the excitement and hopefulness of a child.

“You failed to secure the custody of the child, you call that going according to plan?” Anakin said, glancing over at him critically.

Kylo’s smile faltered slightly but he maintained his upbeat attitude.

“I never really wanted custody of the brat. I merely wished to keep the ungrateful bitch off kilter.” he stood and moved to inspect the mouldering painting adorning the largest wall in the helm-room. “I did so. Now we move onto the next part of my plan.”

“Yes…. And which part was that, exactly?” the elderly man inquired, raising an eyebrow. “You’ve been rather _base_ in your attacks on her husband. Are you quite sure that’s the best method?” 

Ren drew himself up, crossing his arms protectively over his chest. 

“He’s taken what was rightfully mine. He should be mine to do with what I please.” Kylo growled.

“That is a child’s argument, Kylo.” Anakin drawled. “Your animalistic side has truly shown through. Really, I expected better of my own blood. The sadism you’ve expressed is… uncouth, to say the least. Perhaps you have a little more of your _father’s_ blood in you than Skywalker blood.” 

Kylo’s lip curled and his arms tightened across his chest.

“What do you recommend.” he asked, voice shaking with barely restrained anger.

“There are other ways to make people suffer, Kylo.” 

“Oh I know… Make no mistake, I understand that. Make no mistake. In fact, this very moment my operatives are working on a veritable surgical strike to that effect.”

Anakin looked at him, intrigued, but his grandson spoke no more on the subject. Kylo poured them both glasses of twelve-year old Scotch, bumping them together lightly so the cut crystal glasses chimed out brightly.

“To more refined forms of revenge.” Kylo said, smiling darkly.

The white haired Skywalker patriarch nodded silently, gazing out at the sunlit seas all around them. 

*&^%^&*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I understand the confusion re: Anakin. 
> 
> I'm basing him slightly off of my experience with Alzheimers sufferers; in that there's almost a night/day personality switch. Rest assured, he has no love for Kylo outside of their relatedness and mutual business association. Just bear with me. : )


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Smoke**. Rey awoke coughing. Her eyes began streaming the instant they were open and she looked around to find half of her daughter’s bedroom full of smoke. She was up and shaking Izzy as soon as she could get her feet under her. Rey’s mind was in full panic mode, but as she managed to get a drowsy Isobel into her arms, she remembered to test the doorknob before pulling it open. It was room temperature and she cautiously pushed it open. The kitchen was engulfed in flames and she could barely see smoke ebbing out from underneath the closed door of the bedroom she had shared with Luke. 

Fear rising in her, she saw Finn and Poe still unconscious in their sleeping bags. Rey’s instinct to protect her child was foremost in her head as she unlocked the front door, running out onto the gravel driveway and putting Isobel down on the ground.

“Baby. Baby I need you to stay here. Can you do that for Mommy?” she asked in between coughing.

Izzy nodded, fear evident in her eyes. Rey patted her cheek before running back through the open door. The fire in the kitchen had taken root further and begun to lick over the left hand wall. She tore over to her sleeping friends, frantically shaking them. Neither one budged and her frantically spinning mind tried to decide what to do. 

_NO. I AM NOT GOING TO LOSE ANYTHING ELSE THAT I LOVE._

Terror and fury giving her more strength than she’d known she was capable of, Rey grabbed ahold of Poe’s sleeping bag, wrenching it across the hardwood floor with the unconscious man inside. She let out a scream of rage that lent her further strength as she hauled him over the threshold and down the steps. As soon as he was on gravel, she darted back inside, terrified to see how much further the fire was travelling now that the front door was open and lending it more oxygen. She grabbed Finn’s bag, tugging him as hard as she could, tears now streaming down her face as smoke and exertion got to her. As she breached the door with Finn in tow, she turned to see Izzy, the little girl attempting to tug her Uncle Poe further over the gravel. 

“Uncle Poe! Wake _UP_!” Izzy shouted, tugging hard on the top of the sleeping bag. 

She reached out, slapping his cheek with a pudgy hand. Poe let out a ragged gasp, twisting within the sleeping bag and attempting to orient himself in the flickering light of the burning house.

“Rey…. what?” he managed to get himself into a kneeling position as the world spun around him. “What the hell happened?”

“Help me!” Rey shouted, still trying to tug Finn free of the porch.

Poe stumbled to his feet, half crawling toward his prone husband’s form and taking the other side of the sleeping bag. Fear kickstarting his senses and giving him strength, he and Rey hauled Finn’s unconscious body free of the house, carrying him as far as they could, Izzy running after them. As they dropped Finn to the ground, he let out a winded sound and his eyes opened.

“What the fuck?” he demanded hoarsely, crawling out of his sleeping bag.

Poe knelt over him, soot streaked fact full of worry.

“Are you ok?”

“Yeah… but. What’s-” Finn sat up with the help of his husband, eyes widening at the sight of flames inside the Skywalker house. “Oh my god….”

“Is BeBe in there?” Poe asked, gasping for breath.

“We left her with Leia.” Rey answered, breathing hard.

The flames licked higher and higher, soon engulfing the entire front porch. The four shrank back further up the driveway as the heat of the flames became intolerable. Rey could hear sirens in the distance as her home soon became a raging inferno. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes as she watched the last vestiges of all that she’d held materially dear in the world become ash and ruin. Her stomach roiling, she pushed her daughter aside into Poe’s startled arms, darting into the bushes where she was violently sick. 

How much more was she supposed to suffer?

*&^%$#@#$%^&*

It was evening again. Luke’s father only came to visit in the evenings. It was the only time his mind was softened enough to feel anything but the carefully honed disdain for others he’d maintained over decades. The elderly man stood just out of reach, staring almost ghostlike at his son’s disheveled form, chained to an old camp bed and seemingly on the threshold of death. It had been days since Kylo had ordered the man brought for another one of his little sessions but the lack of daily abuse had done little in the way to help Luke heal.

Through his mental torpor, Anakin Skywalker was beginning to comprehend the magnitude of his crimes. He wasn’t really sure what had caused it to take _so very long_ for his conscience to register his crimes. The Skywalker patriarch found himself prisoner to memories of a frightened girl’s face below him, a similar angrier face; bruised and bloodied but that of a boy. He remembered the nameless people whose lives he’d trampled over in pursuit of success and power, the lives he’d ruined searching for glory and recognition. He’d even ruined the lives of his family.

When Kylo looked at him, the dark haired boy only saw the sleek, perfectly manicured and dressed man who had bought and sold companies like they were toys. He’d only seen Anakin’s cool business acumen and his ability to remove emotion from situations otherwise affected by any kind of empathy. 

Kylo didn’t see the loneliness that type of life ended in. Anakin had money. Anakin had power. Anakin had dozens of underlings that would do his bidding. All of those men and women were loyal merely out of fear of either losing a paycheck or retribution from a man who had become a murderously blackhearted employer. The moment he was dead they would descend like vultures, rightfully picking clean the carcass of a man so cruel he’d chased off his only children and caused the death of his wife.

Anakin gazed down at his sleeping son. Now a man, yes. A grown man. An older man. But still his son. He’d long since stopped counting his own birthdays, but he knew he was nearing the twilight of his life. As he looked down at Luke, taking in the bruises and cuts on the haggard man’s face, he remembered looking down at two twin babies in a crib what felt like a thousand years ago. Tiny pink faces with blue eyes staring out at him. Luke had kept those blue eyes and Leia’s had become a warm, chocolate brown after a time. Though they had changed and grown, the two had been an inseparable force; supporting each other and comforting each other as the years passed and their father’s warmth turned to coldness, then to outright cruelty.

He reached out a liver-spotted hand, brushing away a lank strand of hair from his son’s grizzled cheek. Again he wondered why _now_ , why after all this _time_ did the guilt fester and rise up within him?

“Izzy…” Luke breathed.

The sound startled him and the Skywalker patriarch recoiled as his son shifted painfully on the thin mattress. Luke blinked open bloodshot eyes. He inhaled sharply at the sudden realisation someone else was in the room with him and immediately began coughing.

“It’s…. It’s only me.” Anakin said, attempting to sound soothing.

Luke nodded tiredly, pushing himself into a seated position as he tried to calm himself.

“You want something.” it was a statement, not a question.

Anakin moved forward, back into the light. His own eyes were red rimmed; he was finding himself spending more time in this dark, befuddled state and less time coldly coherant and put together.

“You said a name…” he half whispered.

“Did I?” Luke replied half heartedly.

“‘Izzy’?” 

Luke stiffened.

“My daughter.” he replied shortly.

Anakin searched his son’s face, looking for something, _anything_ that would indicate an ability to forgive him for his past sins.

“I think I know her…. I think I’ve seen... How old is she?”

“She’s three.” Luke said, looking away, discomfited by both the idea of his father having met the two people he loved most in the world and by the old man’s disorientation.

“And her mother?”

“What of her?”

“Is her mother…. Alive?” 

“Of course she is. I wouldn’t be here if she weren’t. That’s _why_ I’m here. Because Kylo can’t let go. Because he doesn't accept ‘No’.” 

“Is she beautiful?” 

Luke paused, uncomfortable with the question. 

“Why do you want to know any of this?” he asked cautiously.

The older man’s eyes traced his son’s face, this time searching not for forgiveness, but as if he were trying to memorise every facet of Luke’s visage.

“I do not have much time left.” Anakin replied haltingly.

“That would appear to be two of us.” Luke replied.

Anakin closed his eyes against the tears that welled up. His muddled mind made Padme’s face and disappointed voice come to him. 

_We were counting on you, Anakin._

His eyes snapped open and Anakin collapsed onto knees that were instantly soaked with bilge-water. He seized Luke’s shackled hands between his large, spidery ones and brought them to his lips. Alarmed, Luke attempted to wrench himself away but was not strong enough in that moment to even fend off this elderly and decrepit old man. 

“I am so sorry for causing so much pain in the world. There is no forgiveness for a creature like me.”

Amazed, Luke felt tears drip from the man’s cheeks onto his fingers. He wanted to recoil in disgust but somehow, he lacked the ability to do so, either from a lack of strength or a rising sense of pity. 

“I can only ask for your forgiveness, fully knowing it will not be given. Knowing I do not deserve it. I have committed too many sins against those I should have done nothing to but loved. My ambition became all of me, to the detriment of my family and now my soul is in deficit.” 

As gently as he could, Luke extricated his hands from the weeping man’s grip. Anakin bowed before him, hands upon his knees and shoulders slumped in agonised defeat. 

“I can’t absolve you, Father. I can’t even say that I want to.” Luke took as deep a breath as his restricted lungs would allow him. “What you did to us, to mother, to those around us… that’s not something that can be solved by just apologising. Those wounds run deep. They run deep and some have never healed.” 

Anakin looked up, eyes wet but a sense of determination within them.

“I know.” he said, grief stricken voice shaking. “I know, but I will live out my days trying to atone for my crimes. You shall see.” 

He climbed laboriously to his feet, shrinking back into the shadows until Luke could only see his eyes. The effect was disquieting, but Luke watched him with curiosity as he departed.

“Luke….” Anakin said as he began to climb the stairs.

“Yes?”

“What is her name? Your wife.” 

Luke paused; Rey’s face flashed across his mind bringing with it a smile across his lips.

“Rey. Her name is Rey.” he murmured.

“Rey….” Anakin repeated. “And is she beautiful?”

“Rey is…. Ferocious, incredible, smart, talented, determined, and… yes. Yes, she is beautiful.”

Anakin gave him a warm smile.

“Do not fear, Luke. We will return you to your Rey of light.” 

He disappeared into the darkness. Luke, somewhat bewildered, allowed himself to lie back on the uncomfortable bed, the swaying of the boat more noticeable now for some reason.

*&^%$#$%^&*

Anakin stalked the top deck alone. His mind reeled as it attempted to deal with it’s confused mush of recollections. The moments of coherance were scattered like stars in the darkness of his mind. Footsteps on the deck behind him startled him and he whirled around, wild eyed.

“I do apologize. I merely wished to see if there was anything you needed before I popped off for the night.” Hux said, raising an eyebrow. 

He relaxed slightly. Hux was a slippery eel of a man, but something told him he was not as unhinged as his own grandson.

“Not at all.” he turned back, stepping up to the rail and gazing out at the black sea. Far enough out it met the sky and there was no distinction or line as to where one began and the other ended. “Join me, Hux.” 

Hesitantly, Armitage Hux stepped up, staying cautiously back enough from the rail that he did not have to look at the drop to the sea. 

“What is it I can do for you, sir?” Armitage asked. 

The elderly man paused, drumming his fingers on the tarnished brass rail. He remembered when everything aboard this boat had been new and the railings had shone like gold. He remembered when the deck boards were not scuffed, but glistened with fresh lacquer and gave off the smell of fresh-cut cedar planks. He remembered, as he stood in the bow and looked out at the blackness, taking a trip with Padme to a remote island where they enjoyed one another’s company for days. Luke and Leia had been the result of that “vacation”. 

“I gather you have been very loyal to my grandson for a number of years.” 

Hux shifted uncomfortably.

“I suppose that’s true. Mr Snoke values loyal employees-”

“What do you suppose is my grandson’s end goal, here?” Anakin interrupted, turning to fix Hux with a penetrating stare that made him even more uncomfortable.

“Sir?”

“What do you expect will be the fate of the man kept below decks, in chains, for…. oh are we at about a month and a half now?”

“I don’t know what you mean-”

“My grandson wants Luke dead, that at least I know for certain.” 

“I-”

“Do you know what else I know for certain, Mr Hux?” 

“Sir?”

“I know that if any evidence is left or found regarding this…. this… little _game_ my grandson thinks he’s playing, it will not point to him as the criminal behind it all.” Anakin said sharply.

Hux was silent.

“And if my son dies? Or is killed? _Your_ name is the one that will be in the papers should there ever be a time this crime is discovered.”

The pale grey-green eyes widened and Hux took a step back. 

“You’re not serious.”

“Deadly. If Kylo does not already have a contingency plan….” 

Hux remained silent for a long moment before letting out a sigh.

“What do you propose we do, then? We are thousands of miles from his home. Miles from shore. Ren will notice if his prisoner suddenly goes missing.”

Anakin thought for a moment, tapping his fingers rhythmically on the rail.

“We shall need two things. First, I wish to make out my last will and testament.” 

Hux raised an eyebrow even further than the first time.

“And then…. Can you get the contact information for someone within my son’s circle?”

Armitage Hux gave a grim smile and nodded slowly. 

“Very well, sir. Give me some time.”

“Make it quick.” Anakin snapped, gazing at his own shaking hand. “There is not much time. For me _or_ my son.”

*&^%$#$%^&*


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A simple email brings with it a ray of hope.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Rey finished signing the paperwork the podgy Hispanic insurance agent had brought her. She held in her arms the pile of police paperwork. The conclusion of the investigation had been, unsurprisingly, arson. Rey was too numb after the fire to register anything but the vaguest surprise. When she’d been told that because it had been arson and it would be difficult to prove _she_ hadn’t set the blaze herself, she found herself only experiencing mild perturbation. 

With all the madness of the past month and half, she considered herself lucky not to be a hysterical mess on the floor. It was a welcome surprise when the insurance company had agreed to pay out at least 75% of what would be needed to take care of the destroyed cottage she and Luke had lived in so happily. Rebuilding or relocating wasn’t even on her mind at that moment. She’d moved semi-permanently into Han and Leia’s spare room with Izzy and had done her best to adapt back to everyday life. Izzy seemed to be treating the whole thing like and extending sleepover and Han was more than happy to take over babysitting duties while Leia and Rey attempted both to work and follow leads. 

Her nightmares seemed to have ceased and Rey wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Part of her was convinced the nightmares were proof her husband still lived. The logical part of her brain told her that was foolish.

 

*&^%$%^&*

Poe idly perused his email, deleting the endless array of ads, promotions, and junk that somehow made it through the filters into his actual inbox. There was an email from an address he didn’t recognise and he might have deleted it too, had its subject line not immediately caught his eyes.

_Urgent. Skywalker. Location._

Eyes widening in shock, Poe immediately opened the email, compulsively screencapping it lest somehow get deleted. The sender was nothing but a string of numbers and letters and the content of the email was equally cryptic.

 _Skywalker alive. 52.347615, -10.047655 Come soon._

Poe stared at the obscure message, nonplussed. As his mind registered the message, he pulled up Finn’s contact and called his husband, jiggling anxiously in place as he waited for the phone to ring.

“Hi hon, what’s up?” Finn said. 

“I know where Luke is.” Poe blurted out.

“What?!”

“Or I think I do. I got an email. I think it’s got coordinates. What do we do?” 

“I’m in front of my computer, give me the coordinates and let’s see where they are.” 

Poe read off the coordinates from the email and waited impatiently. 

“That’s the middle of the water off the coast of Ireland. How the hell’d he get out there!?”

“Listen, this is Kylo we’re talking about. Kylo who works for Snoke? Kylo whose grandfather is Anakin Skywalker?”

“Ah. Yes.”

“Ok what now.”

“Drop it in the chat. I’ll be home as soon as possible, we can’t waste any time.”

“Ok. I love you. I’ll see you soon.” Poe said, his adrenaline beginning to thrum through his body.

As soon as he’d hung up the phone, he dropped the screencap in the group chat, staring at it as he waited for the ‘Read’ notifications to pop up. This felt like hope. It felt like they had a chance now.

*&^%$#$%^&*

Han was the first to register the text and its significance. He squinted at his phone before putting on the glasses he Most Certainly Didn’t Need. His eyes widened in shock and he all but launched himself upright, skidding into the bedroom where Leia and Rey were napping. He shook them both awake, thrusting his phone into his wife’s hands and attempting to make any kind of coherent sense but failing fairly miserably.

Leia’s lips moved as she read the message, her look of shock eclipsed by the expression of euphoria and glee that followed it. She pushed the phone into Rey’s hands.

“Oh my god…” Rey breathed, her chest suddenly feeling very tight.

“I’m calling Lando.” Han said firmly, grabbing his phone from Rey and darting out into the hallway to call their old friend.

That set off the flurry of texts and calls that found them all gathered in the Solo living room and hour later. 

“Lando says ‘just say the word, Calrissian’ll take care of all the arrangements’.” Han said in a passable imitation of his friend. 

“What’s the plan, then?” Finn asked, nervousness making his leg shake.

“We cannot go to the police. I can guarantee if Kylo sees any sort of police presence, Luke is as good as dead.” Rey said far more calmly than she felt. 

“Well I’m going.” Poe stated, crossing his arms.

Han opened his mouth and Leia cut him off immediately.

“You’re going nowhere, Han Solo. This is a job for people not in need of knee surgery and Osteo-biflex pills.” Leia said dryly.

He looked at her indignantly.

“Well if you’re going, I’m going.” Finn said, looking at his husband. “Do we ask Lando if he can hire mercenaries…?”

“I guess we could do that… We don’t know what we’ll be dealing with and if there’s only two of us...”

“Uhm… I’m going too?” Rey interjected, somewhat irritably.

Her friends looked at her awkwardly for a moment.

“Rey…” Han started.

“Don’t you start with me Han Solo. My husband is out there, hurt and in trouble. I will _not_ sit here and let someone else fight my battles for me.” Rey said stubbornly. “And if anyone’s going to put a bullet in Kylo Ren’s head it’s gonna be me.”

It was hard to argue with her and none of them felt like challenging the angry young woman on it anyway. That way only danger lay. 

“Ok then….” Han said awkwardly. “Well Lando’s out of town, but he’s given his credit card for any and all purchases including but not limited to ‘a big-fucking bomb if you need to blow the mother-fucker to kingdom come’.” 

“One day I’ll have to figure out a way to thank him…” Rey murmured, twisting her wedding ring on her finger nervously. 

“Well don’t ask _him_ for suggestions. Luke’d end up killing him for one or two Lando would put forward…” Han said lightly.

Rey let out a rare laugh, leaning against him. Leia pulled her laptop from her purse and set it on the table they were all gathered around, keying in the coordinates Poe had received. Google Earth showed them a pixelated spot apparently in the water some miles off the coast of Ireland. 

“So we’re definitely gonna need a boat.” Finn said redundantly.

“I think finding a boat is going to be the least of our worries, babe.” Poe replied blandly.

Han sat down and opened up his ancient MacBook. After a few minutes of swearing at the slow running device and clicking around, he turned with a triumphant expression to the rest of the table.

“Tickets booked. You fly out Friday.”

“Will the wonders of technology never cease.” Leia murmured. “It looks like there’s a pier here…. God this place is in the boonies.” 

She navigated through the street view of Google for the area. Some streets weren’t even paved. 

“Kylo sure knew what he was doing….” she murmured. 

Rey leaned in, taking in the sight of the desolate looking Irish town that was apparently mere miles from her husband. Her stomach leapt in excitement and fear. 

“I need a gun.” she said determinedly. 

Han gave her an indescribable look and almost but not quite rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah, have fun getting through security with a gun, sweetheart. Lando will get you all set up when you get there. Happy?”

“Not particularly, no.” she retorted. 

He stood and placed both hands on her shoulders, looking seriously at her.

“We’re gonna get him back. This is all almost over. Trust us. Trust _me_.”

*&^%$#@#$%^&*


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope springs eternal.

People never really stop to think how long a ten to twelve hour flight actually is until they’re actually trapped inside a long metal tube, thousands of feet above the surface of the earth. By hour five Rey had had enough of the crying children, half-heard music from over other people’s headphones, and stuffy recycled air. She missed Izzy. Han and Leia had been more than happy to take over care of Izzy while Poe, Finn, and Rey made the journey across the sea in search of their missing family member. 

Rey lifted her feet off the floor and curled up as best she could in her seat, wrapping her arms around her shins and resting her chin on her knees as the dull roar of wind over the planes wings lulled her into an almost hypnotised state. 

Finn and Rey had taken seats on either side of her as if she were precious cargo that needed to be protected at all costs. In truth, the rage that had built inside her would have made her a worthy adversary for the most fit of wrestlers or boxers. One way or the other, this was all going to end soon. 

*&^%$#$%^&*

It was both surprising and not surprising in the slightest to discover Lando Calrissian at the gate to greet the three travellers. The older man’s wide smile was even wider as he took in the two young men he’d met only the once at Luke and Rey’s wedding. 

“Brave men, accompanying this fine lady on such a dangerous mission.” he said.

“Stop drooling, Lando.” Rey admonished. “We’ve got work to do.”

Hours later, bags acquired, hotel room checked into, and food ordered, the four sat in the privacy of the rented room. As they ate, they discussed plans. Transportation, possible escape routes, what to do should the worst happen. Poe’s phone dinged and he glanced at it, frowning at the message displayed on the screen.

“What is it?” Rey asked nervously.

He turned the phone towards her and she read the message from the blocked number.

_Ren knows you’re in the country. I suggest you hurry._

“Well… I guess we’d better get on with it then.” Lando murmured solemnly.

He opened a small bag that he’d been carrying with him, laying out a handful of cartridges and handguns. Rey’s stomach twisted as she realised just how close and how dangerous this was all likely to get. 

“Let’s do this.” 

“Well obviously we’re going to do this, Rey. But not until _you_ in particular get a good night’s sleep.” Lando said dryly, patting her on the shoulder. “Get some sleep. We’ll head out in the morning.”

Rey narrowed her eyes.

“He’s right, Rey.” Finn said firmly. “You’ve been up for like twenty-four hours. Sleep. We’ll go early tomorrow.”

Lando stood, surveying them all and nodding.

“Good luck.” he said quietly. “I’ll be around. Poe has my number. Whatever you need, I will provide.” he gave a small bow before leaving the three younger people alone in the hotel room. 

Finn and Poe cleared away the dinner things and Rey inspected the weaponry they’d been given with a critical eye. She hefted the Sig Sauer and ejected the clip, inspecting it critically.

“And when did _you_ become Lara Croft: Tomb Raider?” Poe quipped as he returned from the bathroom, pajama’d; toothbrush in hand.

She glanced at him.

“There’s a lot about me you don’t know.” she replied airily. “I am a woman of mystery.” 

Poe chuckled and returned to finish brushing his teeth. 

“You could have just told him we went shooting that one time.” Finn said with a raised eyebrow and a laugh. 

“Woman of mystery.” Rey said insistently, returning the clip to the handgun and engaging the safety. 

Three-quarters of an hour later she lay on her side in a cold hotel bed, listening to Poe’s light snores and Finn’s breathing. Her view was partially obscured by the hideously coloured hotel room curtain, but she could barely see the sparse lights of the town going out one by one as the hour grew later. 

She reached out to the cold spot beside her; the spot Luke would inhabit if they were just here on a vacation and _not_ on a life or death mission to save him. Grimly, she played through a dozen scenarios in her head. She had to concentrate, had to focus on getting Luke home alive. He _would_ be alive. He had to be. Closing her eyes, she pulled the blanket higher over her shoulder, a shudder running through her. She didn’t know whether it was from the chill or nerves. Either way….. 

_I’m coming, baby._

*&^%$%^&*

The sun had not even come up when Poe was gently shaking her awake. Finn had made a pot of coffee and she swallowed down a cup of the dreadful black bean water just to wake herself up. She’d slept poorly, her dreams full of nightmare scenarios in which they arrived too late too save her husband. Rey dressed in silence as Poe and Finn talked to one another in low voices, heads bowed over one of their phones. 

“Lando has arranged a boat and a captain. He’s supposed to meet us at the pier in a half hour.” Finn said quietly.

Rey nodded, pulling on her heavy jacket and making sure the Sig Sauer was completely hidden in the holster near the small of her back. It would be almost a death sentence to be caught with the weapons in a foreign land with no license or documentation on them. 

They walked quietly from the room, the hotel silent as the room door locked behind them. Rey followed slightly behind her friends, her heart pounding in her chest as she felt the end of their journey- the _nightmare_ she’d been living, approaching. She seemed to be moving without really being aware of time or distance. They were walking on a quiet street, Poe was attempting to navigate while Finn drove the little rental car they’d picked up, her feet registered the change in the ground as they went from pavement to sand to boardwalk to pier, a bald man in a heavy woolen peacoat who removed his watch cap to touch his forelock respectfully at Rey settled them into an old motorboat. He introduced himself as Michael Lobot, indicating he went by his surname most of the time.

Salt spray hit her face as they headed out into black waters, the sun barely making a hint of a glow on the horizon. Her fingers felt numb from the cold and she pulled her hands up into her sleeves. Poe and Finn huddled next to her, lending some warmth and protecting form the wind that tore through their hair. After what felt like a frozen eternity, the motorboat slowed and eventually coasted to a stop in the dark water.

The sun had just risen enough to lend sufficient light to the area that Rey could look around at her surroundings. There was nothing but waves as far as the eye could see in all directions except the way they’d come. 

“Why have we stopped?” she asked, standing to peer around at the waves that lapped at the side of their little boat.

“These are the coordinates I was given.” Lobot said.

“What?” Rey frowned. “That can’t be right-”

Poe pulled out a scrap of paper upon which he’d scribbled the coordinates. He handed it over to their guide, who examined it and nodded slowly. 

“That’s correct. Those are the coordinates I was given. This is the exact spot.” 

“No. No!” Rey said with increasing hysteria. “Where is he? He’s supposed to be here. Where-”

“Rey, I’m sure there’s a good reason-”

“No this isn’t _right_ this can’t be happening! He can’t be gone!” 

Tears flowed down her cheeks as hysteria took root inside her. Her eyes scanned their surroundings madly as if searching for a boat that miraculously might appear from beneath the waves. For _anything_ that might indicate her husband had been here. Seeing nothing, Rey sank into the worn vinyl seat beside Finn, her face in her hands as she struggled not to scream. Poe looked worriedly between Rey and Lobot, moving toward the latter to converse quietly. 

Finn wrapped his arms around Rey and she curled into his shoulder, hysteria giving way to a dull, burning numbness that settled into the bottom of her stomach like a lead weight. Finn was murmuring meaninglessly soothing words to her as he rubbed her back. His anxiety just as evident in his slightly shaking leg. Rey felt the boat lurch as the engine started up; Poe dropping down on the seat next to her and lending himself to the attempt to soothe Rey. His chin rested on her shoulder.

“Lobot is going to sail the area a bit, see if maybe we missed something.” Poe murmured.

She nodded dully, eyes fixed on a smear of oil on the side of the boat. Rey didn’t even feel the cold anymore. The numbness was all consuming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :: scales tree to avoid flaming torches :: I'M SORRY, OK! JESUS.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life is like the waves of the ocean. There are ups and downs, unexpected swells and dips. Weather the tide with determination and resolve.

_He was being moved. No, **he** wasn’t moved. The whole room was moving. The yacht was moving? Oh that didn’t sound good… This boat was old. He was certain his father hadn’t been taking care of the upkeep, based solely upon the all consuming smell of rot and mould and mildew._

_Someone was touching his face. Someone else was talking in a low voice. The someone touching his face had a cool, almost leathery feeling hand._

“Luke.” a voice close to him said.

He cracked open his eyes, fighting not to recoil as he registered the closeness of his father to him. Anakin was brushing a damp cloth across his forehead while his calloused free hand rested against Luke’s cheek. 

“What… Where..?” Luke said groggily.

“We’ve moved.” Hux’s voice said grimly.

“Wh-why?” the chained man replied hoarsely.

Hux moved into the light.

“That would be because of your wife, Mr Skywalker.” the ginger haired man said with discomfort.

“Rey….” Luke’s eyes brightened for a moment at the mention of his wife.

He began coughing and was surprised to feel Anakin’s hands on him, helping him to sit up. The elderly man was staring at him with an expression of deepest regret and shame. Anakin had come more frequently to visit him over the last week; sometimes he tried to engage Luke in conversation, sometimes he just sat in the shadows watching his son sleep. The elder Skywalker could almost feel his mind unravelling like a worn out tapestry; just faded enough that the details were gone, but not so faded you couldn’t make out the shapes and patterns within it. As his mental state worsened, he clung onto three things that he knew for certain. 1) His son was here and in danger. 2) His grandson had become the man he himself had become and he could not allow another monster like himself to walk the earth freely. And 3) That before he died, he was determined to see his son back in the safety of his wife and child.

Luke continued coughing; a deep, chesty cough that ended in a wet sounding inhalation of breath. Anakin held his son and as he did so, his mind travelled back in time to a moment when his wife had held a coughing toddler-Luke, her face turned toward him with and expression of deepest hurt and anger as Luke buried his face in her chest. That had been scant months before Padme had died, wasting away to nothing. Of a broken heart, the nurses had said. Of grief, her friends had insisted. There was truth somewhere in that flowery purple prose of an explanation. He had caused his wife’s demise and surely as if he’d driven a dagger through her heart.

“I am so sorry…” Anakin murmured. 

On the bed, Luke grunted in acknowledgement, too winded by his coughing fit to speak. Anakin lay him down gently, propping him up on the pillow as he turned to Hux with renewed strength and vigor. 

“Communicate our new location to the appropriate parties, Hux.” the Skywalker patriarch said with a shadow of his former menace.

Hux nodded, glancing between the two Skywalker men before silently departing. Looking back at the now unconscious Luke, Anakin gave a great, shuddering sigh.

“This shall all soon be over, my son. You shall soon be home with your beloved.”

*&^%$#@#$%^&*

Nearly five hours later; Poe, Finn, and Rey sat exhausted in their hotel room. Faces windburned and extremities frozen, Poe ordered up some room service and they were soon feasting on traditional Irish pub-fare.

Poe’s phone buzzed and Rey looked up at it listlessly. He picked it up and swiped open the message he had received, a slow smile spreading across his lips as he turned the phone toward Rey and Finn. 

_Skelper Quane’s Pub. 7 o’clock. News about SW. $50,000 Cash_

“Who _is_ this person?” Rey wondered aloud. 

“Who cares, as long as we find Luke, right?” Finn interjected. “I’d better call Lando for the money….” 

She nodded silently, then checked the phone again. They had _hours_ between now and this meeting. 

“Sure wish Leia had given us some of those Xanaxs….” Poe said, rubbing his palms on his jeans nervously. 

“No kidding…”

*&^%$#$%^&*

The pub was nearly empty when the door opened and the slim, ginger haired figure of Armitage Hux slunk in with all the surreptitiousness of the fox entering the henhouse. Rey’s spine stiffened as she noticed him enter. She wasn’t terribly familiar with the weaselly looking fellow, but she knew his face from long ago parties with Kylo’s employer, Snoke. Poe reached out under the table and placed a calming hand on hers. 

Hux recognised them, his lips flattening into a thin line as he walked toward them, taking a seat beside Finn. Rey shook with barely concealed rage.

“Dameron. Mrs Skywalker.” glanced at them both and then nodded at Finn.

“He wasn’t at the coordinates.” Poe said in a low, menacing voice.

The pale man paled even further as he registered the rage evident in the three people surrounding him.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t have time to inform you-” 

Finn reached across the table and seized Hux by the collar. Out of the corner of her eye, Rey could see the bartender reaching for his billy club.

“Finn!” she hissed.

“Where is he?” Finn demanded, ignoring Rey’s warning.

“I’m sorry! Ren moved us without telling me. I woke up and we were in an entirely different location!” Hux choked. 

Finn shoved him back.

“I assume you know where that is _now_?” Rey said harshly.

The red headed man nodded quickly, reaching into his pocket and withdrawing a folded piece of paper. He set it down on the table and pushed it across to Rey, all the while looking around at the mostly deserted pub as if afraid Kylo would appear at any moment. 

Eagerly, Rey grabbed the paper and opened it, finding a similar set of coordinates to the ones provided previously. Hux straightened his tie and sat back in his chair. 

“If that will be all. My payment?” 

Finn withdrew a small beige purse from his own jacket, starting to push it across the table. Hux reached for it but Finn’s other hand darted out and clamped around the slender man’s wrist. 

“If we don’t find what we’re looking for, this money isn’t going to help you hide. We will find you.” 

“He’ll be there, I promise.” Hux said, panic in his voice.

Slowly, Finn let go of his wrist and Hux grabbed the envelope, not bothering to inspect the contents before he bolted, never to be seen by a First Order employee again. Finn warily watched the man flee, finally turning his attention back to his companions. Rey was staring at the scrap of paper as if it held the key to life, the universe, and everything. 

“We can head out early tomor-”

Rey’s head snapped up and she all but snarled at him.

“I’m not waiting another goddamn minute, Finn.” 

Finn shut his mouth immediately and nodded. 

As it turned out, Rey had to wait anyway. Lobot was unavailable at so late an hour, the bald Irishman promising to meet them at the dock at five thirty the following morning. She spent a restless night, staring at the ceiling in between tossing and turning. At one point, Poe threatened to drug her if she didn’t calm down. Eventually she settled, her mind running a mile a minute and one thought going on a loop in her exhausted brain.

_I’m almost there, Luke. I’m almost there._

*&^%$#$%^&*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're almost there, folks.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All situations come to a head like the white-caps on the waves.

Rey felt like she was falling down a set of stairs, never quite able to catch her footing as she tumbled irrevocably towards her destination. She moved through dressing and arming herself like she was only partially connected to her body. The constant ups and downs of the last few months had set her on edge and she wanted nothing more than for it all to be over. Preferably with her husband home in their bed. Her stomach tightened as she remembered even that was not an option anymore. There was no bed and no home to return to if-no when she brought Luke home. 

With a certain sense of deja vu, they again found themselves back in Lobot’s small motorboat, grim faced but hopeful. The journey to the new set of coordinates took all together much longer than their prior attempt. The coastline was long since gone by the time the sun had full risen and a black spot appeared on the horizon amidst the light purple-blue of the early morning sky. As they got closer, they registered what it was; an enourmous previously white yacht. Rust trails decorated her sides and Rey was vaguely alarmed to discover the boat was listing to scuppers slightly. Her hand drifted to the pistol in her belt as they sailed closer, Lobot cutting off the engine as they drew closer and using the impetus of the propeller’s thrust to bring them close enough to grab ahold of a dangling bowline. 

Lobot dropped an anchor over the side and Rey watched the rope attached to it disappear into the depths of the ocean. The Irishman looked around anxiously; morning was beginning to dawn and they would no longer have the cover of darkness to protect them. Rey was the first up the ladder, much to Finn and Poe’s dismay. 

“Shut up and _come one_!” she hissed in a low voice.

Hand over hand she pulled herself up the ladder, knowing better than to look down at the increasing heights to which she was climbed. Cautiously, she peeked over the side to be sure the coast was clear. The top deck was empty. Indeed, the whole ship felt like an empty grave; something that had acted as a tomb for years before the rotting corpse within had been extricated. Poe gave her a gentle nudge on the butt from behind and she climbed over the side, hand automatically going to the handle of her pistol to draw it from her holster.

“What now?” she whispered. 

“Now? Now we wish we’d brought a fuckin’ army.” Finn replied, looking around nervously as he drew his own weapon. “This is creepy as hell.”

Rey rolled her eyes.

“My brave boys.” she muttered.

They walked as silently as they could, peering around corners and into darkened rooms. They descended into the bowels of the ship. As Rey stepped off of the bottom step and into a mouldy smelling hallway, a pair of hands closed around her mouth, muffling her startled scream. The body against hers felt frail, in a way, despite the fact whoever had grabbed her stood head and shoulders above her. 

“SHHHHHH.” the voice of her attacker snapped at her.

The crushing strength of a hand over her mouth lessened and she suddenly felt herself free. Rey turned to see the thin, elegantly dressed form of Anakin Skywalker. 

“What-”

“There’s no _time_ girl!” he said sharply, glancing around at her two companions who had rushed to her aide. “Luke is running out of time. My _grandson_ plans to throw him overboard today. Something about returning him to his natural habitat that he loves so much….” 

Rey took in the sight of her estranged Father-in-law, registering that while his clothes looked expensive and tailor made, he was nonetheless a little disheveled. His shirt was unbuttoned at the throat and a tie hung loosely around his neck. His thin, white hair drifted around his head like candy floss and his Italian wool slacks were crumpled looking and stained with dust. 

“Where is he?” Rey demanded, stepping towards the elderly man.

“Below.” Anakin murmured. “Near the bilges. Kylo is still asleep, I could not… sleep.” he murmured. 

Rey began to turn to hightail it towards her waiting husband, but Anakin swayed suddenly. Reacting instinctively, Rey caught the tall man, one hand resting against his chest to steady him. She looked up at him, an expression of concern on her face despite the horrific past few months the man had been involved in putting her through. 

“Are you unwell?” she asked.

“My time…. My time is running out, child.” he said unsteadily. “Please…. Help me back to the deck? It is not good to be down here in this decay….” 

Poe took the old man’s other side and they helped him up the stairs into the now blazing sun. Rey looked back to see Finn standing unsure of what to do. 

“Find Luke. Bring him to me, Finn.” Rey called, anxiety running through her and making itself evident in her every halting word. 

He nodded in acknowledgement, turning tail and heading into the dark, dank depths of the rotting yacht. 

*&^%$#$%^&*

It was Finn, not Rey who finally found him. For a moment, Luke was disappointed that it wasn’t his wife’s face greeting him after weeks of abuse and isolation. At Finn’s look of sheer shock and horror, he suspected it was better to have first been found and given the opportunity to clean up a bit before meeting his wife again.

“Oh my god…” Finn whispered, his voice catching in his throat and his eyes welling with tears.

“It’s not as bad as it looks.” Luke croaked, shifting and making the links of his chains rattle.

“Luke….” Finn seemed frozen.

“I think there’s a bolt cutter up around the corner of the stairs.” Luke said, feeling lightheaded.

Finn nodded wordlessly, darting back up the stairs for a moment. A moment seemed like a minute which seemed like an hour which seemed like an eternity and, in his delirium, Luke wondered if he’d imagined the whole thing and Finn had merely been a shadow upon the wall or conjured by his warped mind. In another heartbeat, he was gasping as the restrictive collar he’d worn since being brought aboard this accursed dilapidated vessel was broken open and he took the first deep breath he’d taken in weeks.

He lurched forward, Finn having to catch him as his ankle caught on the chair still bolted around his leg. The young man quickly dispatched the padlock holding the chain taught against Luke’s ankle. Finn winced at the sight of the deep, painful looking sores that dug deep into Luke’s flesh. Now he really did have to support the older man as Luke took a weak step forward. Heedless of the weeks of blood and filth on Luke’s skin and clothes, Finn held him close. Luke was confused to feel wetness on his shoulder, soon realising Finn was crying as he held the insubstantial weight of his friend. 

“Can you walk?” Finn asked softly.

“I’m _gonna_ walk out of here.” Luke said hoarsely.

A simple nod of agreement and Finn guided Luke slowly up the stairs, helping him brace himself against the wall.

“Is…. Tell me Rey isn’t here.” Luke asked through the haze that had begun to settle over him.

The younger man looked at him incredulously.

“Luke…. In what world would Rey let us go rescue you alone?”

Luke tried to laugh, but choked instead.

“A fair point.” he rasped. “How’d you find me?”

“Armitage Hux, if you’d believe it.” 

Luke looked at him, amazed.

“I’m just as shocked as you.” Finn said, tightening his hold on Luke as he felt the latter beginning to collapse against the wall. 

“Sorry….” Luke apologised.

“Stop. Let’s get you out of here and then you can start explaining and apologising for things over which you had no control.” Finn murmured quietly, maintaining a supportive hold on Luke.

They walked slowly up the two flights of stairs and out into the sunlight; Luke had to squint as the light pierced eyes that had grown accustomed to darkness. As they rounded a corner toward the the boat, all her could see was shapes. 

Backlit by the afternoon sun as if she were an angel in a renaissance painting, Luke saw her: His wife. His Rey. His heart stopped in his chest, he forgot how to breathe, and for a moment time stopped. He shook himself free of Finn’s supportive arms, the world spinning and the floor beginning to rush up to meet him. 

“Rey.” Luke said, lurching toward her.

She caught him in her arms before he could fall, her tears of relief immediate and plentiful. 

“ _No!_ ” a harsh voice cut into her millisecond of relief.

Rey looked up. Kylo had appeared on deck, gun in hand. 

“I have _not_ worked this hard to fail again! Step away from him!” he snarled at Rey.

Stubbornly, Rey tightened her grip on Luke. She stared defiantly at Kylo as the tall man leveled the barrel of the Sig Sauer at her. 

“Get. Up. Or I will shoot you _both_.”

“Then you’ll shoot us both.” she cradled Luke’s cheek. “Either way, this will all end today.” 

She heard the click of the hammer being drawn back. 

“This is your fault, you know.” Kylo hissed. “All you had to do was stay. All you had to do was be a good little girl and do as you were _told_.” his voice broke over his next sentence. “You ruined me when you left.”

Rey remained unmoved as she watched tears trickle from the corners of his dark eyes. 

“You could have been rich and famous and worshipped by everyone, Rey. You were _nothing_ before I met you. I made you _worth_ something! But you chose _this_ over me!? _Why_!?”

She looked down at her husband, whose eyes were sliding in and out of focus.

“I didn’t want that. I wanted love, Kylo.” she said coldly.

“I _did_ love you-”

“You loved me as you love your _car_ , Kylo. I was never anything but a possession to you. Another thing you could manipulate. Another expensive toy.”

He looked at her, dumbstruck, finger tightening on the trigger. Suddenly, Poe darted towards him, Finn close behind him. Poe’s hands closed over Kylo’s as he tried to force the gun from the taller man’s hands. The Sig was pushed low and Kylo let out a bellow of rage. The gun went off and Finn let out a cry, buckling to the floor as Poe swung his fist back and connected with Kylo’s jaw before her could re-cock the handgun and fire again. Kylo stumbled back, losing his grip on the gun and sending it toppling over the side of the boat and into the water.

Rey drew the .45 from the pocket of her jacket, holding it steady as she sighted upon Kylo. 

“Come on, Rey….” Kylo started cajolingly. “You wouldn’t kill me. Not after what we shared…” 

She laughed bitterly.

“Are you referring to the years of terror you caused? Or the months I’ve spent worrying about the man I love, the father of my child? Maybe the nightmares or sense of worthlessness?” she clenched her jaw. “No Kylo, if there was any kind feeling between us, you long ago killed it.” 

Kylo took a step toward her and Rey heard the click of another hammer cocking. She looked up in absolute surprise to see Luke’s father standing with a drawn pistol trained on Kylo.

“Don’t take another step.” Anakin said.

The shaking hand levelled the old pistol at Kylo, one large finger tightening around the trigger on the revolver and fixing it’s wavering barrel more steadily in the vicinity of Kylo’s chest. 

“You’ll never be me, son.” Anakin said, his voice for once solid and in the present. “You’ll never be me because you have no empathy. No regret. No sorrow for your actions. You didn’t _learn_ from the mistakes made by those in the past. Like a fool, you want to repeat them for yourself.”

He looked briefly at Rey and Luke, the former of which also holding a gun on Kylo. Luke suspected it was only that second weapon trained upon him that prevented Kylo from attempting to snatch the old man’s gun from him. Anakin gave his son a sad smile.

“I am so truly sorry, Luke.” he said softly. “What I did to you children…. What I did to your mother…. It was monstrous. I shall burn in the fires of hell for what I have done.”

Rey felt the air change as Luke swayed, half dropping to one knee as weakness overcame him. She caught him around the middle, not missing the gasp he let out as her arm encountered broken ribs.

“Yes…. yes… I shall burn.” Anakin murmured, returning his attention to Kylo. He smiled not pleasantly at the young man, knowing he was his own flesh and blood but knowing further that the world did not need another Anakin Skywalker. Kylo exemplified all the worst qualities of the Skywalker patriarch. The world needed more Lukes, more Leias. More Han Solos and Finns and most of all, more Reys. 

Anakin glanced back once at the young woman who was attending to his son while still maintaining her firm grasp upon the gun pointed at Kylo. Rey couldn’t quite identify the emotion in the hooded old eyes, but she recognised the sad smile that painted itself across his face as he drank in the sight of his son safe in her arms.

“The world does not need another generation of monsters, boy.” he said plainly. “It is time for the monsters to die.”

Two shots rang out, followed by a grunt, then by a splash. Anakin stepped up to the railing of his decrepit old boat, raising the pistol and putting its still smouldering tip underneath his chin. Rey thought she could smell burning flesh as the top of the barrel touched skin.

“It would have been nice… to get to know my grandchild and her mother. But….” Anakin murmured. “It’s time…. For _all_ the monsters to die.”

“Father-!?” Luke started.

The third shot rang out and Anakin Skywalker fell gracefully in an almost dive over the side of his boat, disappearing into the murky green depths of the sea. Kylo’s body floated facedown for a moment before also sinking like a poisonous black ink spot into the unknown fathoms.

Poe sighed in relief, sagging to his knees and running a hand over his face. Finn crawled to his side, still nursing the wound in his thigh. He curled himself around Poe and the two sat together, rocking back and forth as they comforted each other. 

There was a thud as Rey dropped her gun to the deck, needing both hands to cradle Luke to her. Her stomach twisted as the scenario triggered memories of watching him stop breathing as his life’s blood soaked her clothes.

“God am I glad to see you.” he breathed, struggling to speak over the pain and discomfort.

She let out a happy sob, resting her forehead against his despite how filthy he was.

“I’m so glad to see you too, are you ok?” her voice cracked on the last word and she was crying fully now.

“I’ve….. I’ve honestly been better.” he rasped, stroking her tear streaked cheek with a dirty hand.

“I know, honey. What hurts? What can I do?” 

His eyelids fluttered shut for a moment and Rey shook him violently.

“NO. No way. Not again. You’re not putting me through this again, Luke Skywalker.” she said fiercely.

Luke’s eyes opened wide and he focused on her as best he could.

“S-sorry. Re-really tired. So, so tired….”

Rey stroked his disheveled hair. 

“I know. I know. Please, just try to stay awake until help gets here.” she pleaded.

Poe looked up.

“Uhm, Rey?” he said, sounding awkward.

“What?”

“I don’t think we’re gonna get an ambulance way out here. And I don’t know if you noticed, but Lobot’s boat seems to have wandered off.” he gestured vaguely. “We’re gonna have to sail into port and hope there’s help there. Radios are dead too.”

Rey pursed her lips.

“Fine.” she said defiantly. “I’ll just have to figure out how to steer this thing then.”

Luke let out a watery chuckle, groping for the railing behind him and attempting to heave himself to his feet.

“I’ll do it.” he said, knuckles going white as he clung to the rail for support. “Your rescue will be kinda pointless if we wind up crashing and sinking before we get to land.”

Rey bit her lip, going against her better judgement and helping him stay upright. He was right, he was likely the only one aboard who could get them to port. She tried hard not to hold him too tightly but the desire to both support him and hold him close to her and never let go was overwhelming. He hobbled in the direction of the wheelhouse, Rey stumbling along after him and pushing open the door with her hip. The smell of mould and mildew was almost overwhelming and she could all but feel her sinuses closing up in protest. Luke let go of her, hopping toward the tarnished looking brass ship’s wheel. Rey gazed around, taking in the dreary surroundings of the dilapidated vessel. If she looked hard enough, she could see the markings of what was once a very fine, very expensive yacht, owned by a rich and spoiled man. A mildewed painting overlooked them, tendrils of mould snaking upwards from the bottom. The worn and dusty carpet had clearly once been luxurious, but now it showed through to the subflooring in places. She wondered if it was even safe to walk on this part of the ship. 

Behind her, Luke let out a grunt of effort and she heard the squeal of rusted steel as he wrenched a lever down. The boat jolted and she heard the distant clink of heavy chains; the anchor was being raised. Rey crossed to her husband, standing worriedly by his side, her concern equal parts for him and for the safety of all of them should this rusted out old wreck not actually be seaworthy.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Traumatic events take time to heal from. True partners help each other heal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lemon ahead if that's not a thing you want to read.

*&^%$#@#$%^&*

Luke steered them into port, eyes drifting closed for a few moments at a time, always starting awake before too long. He managed to get the rusted out relic of the Frau Todesstern into an empty berth, releasing control of the helm with a sigh that all echoed. There were a fair few dock workers milling about and they were all taken aback by the sight of four people disembarking from for what all intents and purposes, was a ghost ship. They were even more alarmed when they realised one of the four had been shot and a second looked like a walking corpse.

They had made it halfway down the dock when Luke’s legs gave out and he could walk no further. Rey tried to carry him, but he was still too much to haul despite his wasted state. Poe darted off down the boardwalk in search of some help.

She sank down on the damp wooden boards, holding him in her lap with his back against her chest. Luke let his head fall back over her shoulder, his breathing laboured. Rey fitfully stroked his greasy hair back, nervously kissing his dirty cheek and muttering calming sentences to him.

“I love you. I love you so, _so_ much. Every night you were gone I wanted to scream. Please, babe. Please don’t leave me and Izzy.” she murmured, kissing every bit of his face she could reach. “I love you. I love you I love you I love you.”

His skin was boiling to the touch and she could feel the fever coming off of him in waves. 

“This is…. _not_ how I envisioned seeing Ireland for the first time.” Luke quipped shakily.

“Well we’re just going to have to make up for it by having that honeymoon we talked about when we first got married.” Rey replied, trying to keep him talking. “Where d’you want to go? Let’s make a list.”

“Tired…..” he breathed.

“No. No baby. Come on, stay awake. Stay with me, stay talking.” she said insistently. “Blarney Stone, Cliffs of Moher, the pubs- Baby we can do a pub crawl-”

“Tell Izzy how much her Daddy loves her. Just in case….” Luke murmured. He coughed and the sound terrified her for how sick she realised he was. “Tell Leia she doesn’t have to be afraid of the monster anymore.” 

Rey felt his head slip to the side, resting against her jaw, and was about shake him and scream at him when she felt his hot breath against her skin. However faint it was, it was there. In the distance she could see flashing lights and hear an unfamiliar siren that she suspected were Irish EMTs. She could hear pounding footsteps and a rattling sound and a group of reflective yellow jacketed people running toward her. 

“S’cuse me, ma’am. Can you tell me what’s happened?” a heavily accented young man wearing a reflective jacket with some kind of insignia on it asked as he knelt beside them to ascertain the situation.

She let out a bitter laugh, subconsciously curling herself more protectively around her husband. 

“It’s _supremely_ complicated. Explanations later?” she said, feeling herself begin to shake as the last few weeks suddenly began weighing on her. 

Rey was filled with gratitude as she was bundled into a crinkly silver emergency blanket and gently shunted to the side as Luke was carefully lifted onto a stretcher. She hurried after them as they loaded the gurney into the back to the obnoxiously yellow ambulance, climbing in and sitting down as near as she could without getting in the way. Luke regained consciousness periodically throughout the ride, his blurry eyed vision settling each time on the wavering form of his worried looking wife. The two EMTs murmured to one another, one taking vitals, the other taking notes. There was a pinch and a sting as an IV was slipped into half collapsed veins in his forearm, then the sensation of cool water covering his body followed by a blissful floating sensation. 

_Nothing hurt. Nothing ached._

The glorious floating sensation continued and he only half registered the jolts and bumps of being unloaded from the back of the ambulance. The only thing he was aware of truly was the feeling of Rey’s hand in his own as she half jogged along with the gurney. Cold again flooded through his veins as someone in a scrub top pushed a syringe of something into the IV line; Luke floated up, up, and away, Rey’s hand slipping from his as he surrendered to comforting, velvety blackness.

*&^%$#@#$%^&*

Sometimes the body just says “sleep” and one must obey. They were well into day three when Poe and Finn nervously asked if she would be ok on her own. She’d said yes, of course. Finn was walking with crutches; leg bandaged where the bullet had torn through. They’d promised they would tell Leia everything when they returned and work out some kind of living arrangements for Luke and Rey when they too decided to return to the US. Rey found herself a stranger in a strange land; alone in a foreign country with an unresponsive husband and no idea what to do with herself.

Lando had left her with a bundle of case and a new iPhone and a demand that she call him for any little problem or need she might have. When he departed, the hug she bestowed upon his was as warm and as pure as any he’d ever received. Lando glanced at his old friend’s sleeping form before nodding decisively and quietly leaving.  
On night five Rey was jolted from her uneasy sleep by a strange sound. She immediately assumed the strange noise was one of the machines hooked up to her unconscious husband, but as she assessed the various wires and tubes running over and into his body, she had to turn her attention to Luke’s face. His jaw was clenched so tightly she could hear his teeth grinding. A muscle stood out in his throat and the strange noise seemed to be coming from his mouth. Rey paled when, after a moment, she realised he was screaming through his clenched teeth. She sat down beside him on the bed, taking one of his hands and attempting to unball the fists he was making in the bedclothes. 

“Luke.” she murmured, stroking his face with her free hand as she intertwined her fingers with his. “Luke wake up. It’s just a dream.”

She glanced at the heart-rate monitor, noticing it was registering a heart-rate well over 120 BPM. Rey lowered her mouth to his ear, still caressing his cheek.

“Sweetheart, it’s a dream. You’re having a nightmare; you’re safe.” Rey kissed his cheek, still murmuring soothingly to him,

“...Rey!” his choked cry came, half sob of terror, half grunt of pain. 

Luke surged up in the bed, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face in her hair. Rey let him cling to her like she was the only thing keeping him from drowning until the terror ebbed from him and she felt his grip relax. She kissed his forehead, brushing back his sweat-soaked greying hair and taking his shaking hands in her own. It startled her to see twin trails of tears on his cheeks. 

“I thought I was never gonna see you and Izzy again.” he gasped, sounding strangled. “Ben…. He-”

“Kylo’s gone. He’s never going to bother any of us ever again. And I would have _never_ let him keep you from us.

She held him for a long moment, gently rubbing his back, hoping she was calming him. Slowly, he relaxed against her. Rey crawled up beside him, careful of his injuries and the various iv’s running into him, and curling up beside him.

“You’re safe.” she said softly, stroking his cheek.

Blue eyes met the brown and for the first time in months, Rey felt herself allow a genuine smile to cross her lips. 

*&^%$#$%^&*

Rey had the distinct sense of deja vu as she helped Luke into a cab outside the hospital. 

“Let’s make this the last hospital stay for a good while, shall we?” she murmured, kissing the top of his head as she got him situated in the cab.

The disarmingly and stereotypically ginger haired and be-freckled nurse that had attached herself to the Skywalkers gave her a wave from just inside the hospital doors. As she turned and disappeared back into the hospital, Rey walked around the other side of the cab and got in, careful not to jar Luke as she slid in beside him in the compact sedan’s back seat. 

Scooting to the divide between front seat and back, Rey quietly gave the driver instructions and they were soon away down the winding Irish roads. The cabbie drove them out of the city and onto the less well maintained roads. Rey had elected to keep to the coast, wanting to give Luke a chance to recuperate in peace before returning to the hustle and bustle of their everyday lives back in the states. 

They arrived at the B&B she’d hastily booked in a relatively short amount of time, Rey tipping the driver and anxiously attempting to help Luke out of the cab as he irritably waved her off. He leaned heavily on the knobbly wooden cane, again reminding her of the time she’d retrieved him from the hospital after his bike accident. She backed off a bit, the cabby opening the boot of the car and helping her unload the plastic bags of supplies she’d purchased while Luke had been asleep one evening. She exchanged a smile and a nod with the cabby as he climbed back into his car and drove away. 

Luke had already attempted to lean over and pick up some of the bags, but Rey hurriedly snatched them up and stood waiting for him to follow her into the bed and breakfast. There was a tiny reception area just inside; a rosy cheeked woman reading a paper rested with her feet on a small pouf behind it. She leapt to her feet as she saw them enter.

“Oh, goodness me!” she exclaimed. 

Rey sidled past Luke, putting their bags down carefully as she stepped up to the desk.

“Skywalker. I put a reservation in yesterday. I do apologise if it’s short notice…” 

“Not at all, dearie.” the woman replied in a thick Scottish brogue. “I’m Mrs Ó Briain; your room’s been ready since this mornin’.” 

“A ground floor room-” Rey attempted to ask quietly.

“Rey, I’m not an invalid. I can do stairs.” Luke cut in, a little annoyed.

“I know you’re not, but-”

“Now see here, Mr Skywalker.” Mrs Ó Briain said, putting her hands on her matronly hips. “Your wife is just looking out for your best interests. Your room is on the ground floor and if you have _any_ issues during the night you best be sure to ring us up immediately, d’you hear me?”

Luke looked taken aback, nodding mutely as Rey gave him a satisfied smirk. Mrs Ó Briain checked them in and helped to carry their plastic-bag-luggage into the generously sized room Leia had helped Rey book. 

Mrs Ó Briain chattered away amiably, helping Rey to “unpack” the plastic bags; hanging up a camel overcoat and tartan scarf on a wooden hanger as she glanced at Luke, who’d been relegated to sitting on the end of the bed, his hands folded over the top of his cane.

“We’ll have to get you a proper Irish tweed cap, Mr Skywalker. You’ll look very dapper strolling along with your swagger stick and bonny wee lassie. My Charlie ought to have one lyin’ about. I’ll have a look this evening.” 

He gave Rey an amused look as the two women finished hanging up and putting away what needed to be unpacked. 

“There’s fresh towels in the bathroom, dearie.” Mrs Ó Briain, smiling an award winning smile at her guests as she began to excuse herself from the room. “Do ring if you’re in need of anything!” 

Rey thanked her profusely, attempting to press a twenty pound note into the woman’s pudgy hand but failing as she was waved off. Rey gently closed the door after their hostess, turned to look at her husband, still seated on the bed. 

She was silent for a long moment, just watching him. 

“Is there anything you want? Are you hungry? Can I get you anything?” she asked, trying to restrain the urge to hover over him like an anxious moth over a flame.

Luke smiled at her.

“I’d like to take a shower.” he said quietly.

Rey nodded, keeping herself tightly restrained as he headed into the bathroom. He left the door open and when she heard the water turn on, she allowed herself to follow him in. For once, she didn’t join him in the shower. It was a small glass wall surrounded stall, large enough for two or more to stand in. Rey sat on the closed toilet lid and watched him, hawk-eyed through the glass. Luke stood under the showerhead, face turned up towards the spray as scaldingly hot water pounded into his aching muscles. Through the foggy glass, Rey could make out the outline of his body; a much thinner outline than she’d grown used to. She watched him soap himself up and rinse away the lather, biting her lip as she realised that what she’d _thought_ was dirt or discolouration wasn’t being removed because they were bruises.

“You’re quite the voyeur, do you know that?” he mused as he turned to face her. 

“I-I just want to make sure you’re ok.” she replied, frowning.

Luke shut off the water, opening the stall door and smiling at her ruefully as water streamed off his body.

“I’m ok, Rey.” Luke said softly. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“That’s what you said last time.” Rey replied, picking up a towel and opening it.

“Rey…” 

She wrapped the towel around his waist, noting with displeasure the jut of his hipbones and the fresh array of pink scars that decorated his chest and arms. Her fingers traced a long laceration that had healed on his bicep; she frowned, wishing she could wipe away the scars with her touch.

“I wish I could kill him again.” she hissed under her breath.

“Well, thankfully my father took care of that for us.” Luke said, taking her hands in his and bringing them to his lips. “I’m here with you now, Rey. He’s gone for good now.”

“Not if he wasn’t actually dead when he went in the water; what if he comes back?”

Luke chuckled, encircling her with his arms and pulling her against his wet chest.

“Rey, not even Kylo can survive a bullet to the head, a fifty foot drop, and thirty degree water. He’s not Jason Vorhees.” 

“Promise?” 

“As much as I can, love.” 

He bent his head slightly and kissed her; Rey rested her hands gently against his skin, his chest hair ticking her palms. 

“What do you want to do now?” she asked cautiously.

Luke gave her a tired sigh.

“Much as I’d like to continue our tradition of ravishing you legless after a hospital discharge, I’m more tired than I thought I would be.”

“Do you want to take a nap?”

He made a face. 

“I’ll lie down for a little bit. Is there TV?”

She nodded, leading him by the hand out into the bedroom. Rey retrieved the brand new pajamas she’d bought him as well as the reading glasses and Guinness t-shirt she’d found at the local Tesco. 

“Just like home.” he mused, changing into the clean, dry clothing before sinking down into a reclining position on one side of the bed. 

Rey kicked off her shoes and snuggled up beside them as they turned on the TV and tried to find something to watch. Twenty minutes into an episode of a comedy show called “Mrs Brown’s Boys”, Rey looked up at her husband to see his eyes tight shut, his glasses askew, and his mouth slightly open as he snored. He was dead asleep.

Turning down the volume on the TV, Rey curled more tightly against him and allowed herself the privilege of feeling calm and safe for the first time in months. She felt like she’d been running down a steep mountain incline since the day she’d discovered Kylo had again managed to bamboozle the court system into his early release. Now that she knew that he was literally sleeping with the fishes, her child was safe, and her husband was alive and well and in her arms, she allowed herself to let herself enjoy his presence and the calm that surrounded them.

*&^%$$%^&*

True to her word, Mrs Ó Briain did indeed acquire a hat for Luke. Rey opened their door one morning about a week after they’d checked in to discover a tray of breakfast food and a grey tweed flat-cap, wrapped in a red bow. Rey reentered the room, tray in hand and hat perched precariously on top of her head. She set the tray down on the end of the bed and tossed the gift to Luke, who was drowsily sitting up in bed and rubbing his eyes. 

“Mrs Ó Briain left you a gift. I’ll bet she’s sweet on you.” Rey teased. 

Luke stared at the hat in his hands uncomprehendingly for a moment before untying the ribbon and examining it. He pulled it on and held his hands out in a ‘ta-daa’ gesture. 

“Well?” he asked.

“I think you look dashing.” she giggled. “How do you feel?”

“I feel extremely feckin’ ba-jeezus.” he replied.

“You what?!” 

“Something I heard Mr Ó Briain say.” he chuckled. 

Rey crawled onto the bed next to him, pulling the breakfast plate with her. She lifted the lid off the plate.

“I’m going to be roughly whale sized by the time we get home.” Luke complained.

“You could use fattening up.” Rey retorted. “I want my husband’s love-handles back.” she reached over and groped his sides experimentally

He gave her a skeptical but amused look, picking up a sausage and biting into it thoughtfully.

“You know, people are going to think you have a fetish if you keep this up.” he smirked.

She gave him a light shove, devouring a piece of bacon and stretching her legs out.

“Very well, would you like to go for a walk today?”

He nodded.

“That sounds nice.”

“Mrs Ó Briain says there’s a path that runs down by the seashore. We can go there. But only if you’re up for it.” she said, looking at him carefully as she attempted to ascertain if he was well enough to leave the premises.

“They cleared me over a week ago. I’m sure they would have kept me longer had I not been well enough.”

“They cleared you to _their_ standards. But what about _my_ standards?” she said haughtily.

Laughed, he gave her a kiss that tasted of breakfast foods and morning breath.

“Yuck! Go brush your teeth, you gross potato!” Rey protested. 

He tweaked her chin, getting out of bed far more easily than he had the past few days. His shirt rode up slightly and she was pleased to see that the deep mottled purple-blue bruising was beginning to fade to an unpleasant yellow-green. Rey got dressed as she heard him brushing his teeth. She pulled out his coat and scarf from the closet and lay them on the bed beside her as she waited. 

Luke returned from the bathroom and changed into jeans and a long sleeved shirt, Rey pulled the coat and scarf from the closet and helped him into the long, camel coloured wool coat, wrapping the scarf around his neck and tucking it in. He looked at her with a raised eyebrow as she settled the tweed cap onto his head, patting his cheek affectionately.

“Are you quite satisfied?” he said, amused. 

She nodded, grinning mischievously and tugging him in close by the scarf for a kiss. Luke wrapped his arms around her deepened the kiss. When he finally released her, she was as breathless as the first time they’d kissed oh so long ago. 

“ _Now_ I’m satisfied.” she said in a low purr. 

Chuckling, he offered her his arm and they sidled out of their rented room, Luke nodding amicably to Mrs Ó Briain. They walked arm in arm down the steps and over the road, their feet crunching on the gravel that served as paving in parts of the path. Their journey took them over two actual paved roads and down a set of stone-paved stairs onto the rock-strewn beach, cold waves crashing against the shore. 

Rey let go of his arm and intertwined their hands instead, letting him set the pace as they strolled the beach, talking leisurely to each other. The crunch of sand and stones beneath their boots was the music that accentuated their relaxing walk. They’d walked perhaps a mile and a half when they came to an outcropping of stone that looked out onto the crashing waves. Luke climbed up onto it, helping Rey climb up after him; grunting slightly in exertion. 

“Wow….” Rey murmured, looking out at the vast blue-green expanse of water. Whitecaps formed on the tops of every wave and gulls dove for their suppers. Out in the distance, Rey thought she could see the spray from a whale’s blowhole. 

He took off his hat, the wild sea wind blowing through his once again shaggy greying hair. Rey’s breath caught in her throat as he gazed out at the tumultuous sea, his eyes brighter and more full of life than they had been since she’d wrapped him in her arms aboard the Frau Toddestern. 

“It’s beautiful….” he murmured, eyes fixed on the waves. 

“ _You’re_ beautiful.” Rey replied.

He glanced down at her, a smile quirking his lips.

“I’m supposed to tell _you_ that.” 

She nestled against him, her hand burrowing under his coat and over his heart, which beat steadily against the palm of her hand. He encircled her with his arms, pulling her close. She felt safe and happy, though part of her felt she was still supposed to be the one comforting him. It was a perfect moment; the turmoil of the seas a perfect contrast to the calmness of being with one she loved most in the world. Rey felt the scratch of his beard as he kissed the top of her head, his warm breath against her hair. 

“I love you.” he said in a voice so low it was almost lost in the crashing waves. “So much.” 

Rey smiled happily, turning her face up towards his like a flower greeting the sun. Their lips met and she surrendered to the kiss, leaning on her husband for support. He held her tight; standing firm and steady as he ever had. When she finally drew away, her cheeks stung as cool winds made the tear tracks upon her cheeks nearly freeze. Luke smiled at her, wiping away her tears. 

“Why are you crying, love?”

She cupped his cheeks, the coarse hairs of his beard tickling her palms as she gazed into his eyes. 

“I’m just happy to have you safe. I’m happy to have my husband back.” 

“I’m not going anywhere. No one will take me away from you ever again, love.” he replied, resting his forehead against hers. 

Rey smiled, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. When she finally had gathered herself, she cleared her throat and looked at her husband with renewed vigor.

“Well. What would you like to do now?”

“Now?” he replied in a seductive growl.

She swatted his chest.

“We’re not having sex on a cold beach in full view of tourists and natives alike.” she scolded.

Luke gave her a pouting look and pulled her in close again, hands resting on her backside.

“Oh very well…. What do you want to do?” he grumbled, mock offendedly.

Rey tucked gently at his beard.

“I asked _you_. We may as well enjoy this limited time we have to take that trip we’d planned.” 

He thought for a moment, squeezing her bum almost absent mindedly.

“I am looking forward to being home in my own bed….” he said slowly.

“Ah.” Rey winced.

“Ah?” 

“Ah. Yes…. er…. About that…”

Luke relaxed his grip on her for a moment and pulled back, looking at her suspiciously. 

“Rey?”

“Er, I never did get around to telling you what happened while you were… well… er.” Rey trailed off, not really sure how to approach the subject.

“Rey? Why can’t I sleep in my own bed?” Luke asked calmly.

She grimaced. 

“There was a bit of a fire.” 

“A ‘bit’ of a fire?”

“Ok, a large fire. Arson. Two guesses who was responsible for that.” she said, searching his face. “Luke I’m so, so sorry….”

Luke was silent for a long, _long_ moment. Rey was afraid she’d shocked him into catatonia until he let out a soft chuckle. 

“My Rey…. My Rey of light. You’re ok though? And Izzy?” 

She nodded.

“It’s fine.” he murmured softly. “Burned to the ground?”

“Essentially.” she replied cautiously, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“Well… we’ll rebuild. Better. Unless you want to move?” 

“No! I love our spot.” Rey assured him. 

“We’ll figure it out….”

Rey nodded, her brown eyes meeting his blue ones and falling into them as she had when she’d first met him. 

“Shall we head back?” she asked after a moment.

Luke nodded, taking her hand as they hopped off the rock and began to head back the way they’d come. Almost as soon as the roughly hewn rock-paved stairway came into view, a torrential downpour dropped from the sky. 

Rey let out a shriek of both dismay and delight as the rain poured down on them, almost immediately soaking them both to the skin. They bolted up the stairs, laughing and half tripping as they made a mad dash back up the road in the direction of their lodgings. Luke slowed down as the bed and breakfast came into view, the rain lessening slightly. He looked up, the rain pouring down over his face and soaking into his hair and beard as they walked leisurely toward the B&B. 

They crossed the threshold, dripping water onto the linoleum as Mrs Ó Briain let out a startled and dismayed cry. 

“You’ll catch your death of cold you wee eedjits!” the matronly woman scolded, rushing to bring towels to her guests. 

Luke took the towel he’d been given and began drying Rey’s hair as she protested, her towel wrapped around her shoulders. 

“Get out of those wet clothes and into something dry before you both catch pneumonia!” Mrs Ó Briain exclaimed, ushering them toward their room. 

Rey laughed as she was pushed into the bedroom she’d book, hearing the door close behind them. Luke’s hand were on her coat, pushing it off her shoulders and letting it fall to the ground as his fingers snaked under the hem of her shirt, pulling it over her head. One hand rested on her hip as he guided her back toward the bed. Luke pulled her shirt off, tossing it into a corner and attacking her bra clasp with renewed vigor.

“Luke-!” she gasped as he pushed her back onto the bed. 

His fingers twitched open the button of her jeans, pulling them down and off her hips and leaving her in naught but damp panties as he shrugged out of the heavy wool coat she’d bought him. Luke tugged impatiently at his shirt and fly; the former landing in a soggy heap as he managed to push his pants down over his hip. Rey felt him move the crotch of her panties aside, a gentle questing finger stroking her clit as he gazed at her, pupils dilated. She nodded, eyes slowly shutting as he slid one finger slowly inside her, his thumb gently moving over the sensitive bud nestled between her pussy lips. 

She could do little but moan; his touch was supremely careful but also expert in its ministrations. Her legs opened further, hips thrusting instinctively toward him as his finger stroked in and out of her. Rey whimpered, eyes meeting his as he teased her. Her brow furrowed, mouth dropping open in a silent moan. She let out a very audible cry as he withdrew his hand from her, sucking the moisture from his fingers and grinning down at her. 

Rey gave him a betrayed look, reaching for him even as he pulled her left leg around his  
waist. Her body tensed as his lips moved over her from collarbone to navel, his tongue dipping into her belly button to tickle and tease her. She let out a keening cry as he filled her with a sudden, smooth thrust. Rey buried her face in his shoulder, clinging to him with all her might. Heels locked at the small of his back Rey urged him on, trailing kisses over his skin and murmuring encouragement to him. As his movements became more desperate, she clung tighter to him, her own pleasure building to a tight knot in her belly and between her legs until tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. Her lip trembled enticingly as she let out a desperate cry, her orgasm tumbling over her like the waves they’d watched not so many hours ago. She was mindlessly happy; her lover finishing moments later as he gasped out her name against her skin, repeating her name over and over again as he covered every inch of her he could reach with kisses.

“I love you….” she murmured, her hands automatically burying themselves in his hair as he came to rest with his cheek against her breast.

“I love you too.” Luke said, sounding exhausted but pleased. 

She leaned down and kissed to the top of his head.

“You know I’m not on birth control right?”

Luke grunted in acknowledgement, shifting so that he was situated further down. He pressed a kiss to her abdomen. 

“Well, we’ll just have to build a two story house then…” he mumbled sleepily, resting against his wife’s belly.

“I _did_ say you were in danger of castration if you ever got me pregnant again.” she laughed, still stroking his hair.

He waved a hand noncommittally, heaving himself to the side with a happy sigh and enfolding her in his arms as his head sank into the pillow. As she rested comfortably against her husband’s chest, she listened to the beat of his heart. It slowed from the mad pace of exertion to the steady thump-thump of rest. Rey let herself relax the steady beat of his heart her long missed lullaby and his body underneath her the safety blanket she’d missed for so long. 

Luke was safe. Luke was home. Luke _was_ her home.

*&^%$#$%^&*


	19. Chapter Nineteen

They dragged their “vacation” out for another two and a half months. Rey was in constant contact with the family back in the states and she and Luke Facetimed with Izzy frequently. The little girl was confused as to why her parents hadn’t returned, but not so disturbed as to be upset. She seemed to be enjoying her time with Han and Leia and the occasional day and night out with Poe and Finn. What little girl in the world could be so lucky as to have so many people who adored her and looked out for her every need? She was loved and supported and could see her parents were safe and very much alive during their nightly chats. 

Rey was determined to take Luke to actual vacation spots, knowing how much he’d wanted to go and explore all that Ireland had to offer. They visited all the traditional tourist spots and indeed, all the pub crawls Rey could find. It was on one such pub crawl that they passed a tattoo shop and Luke stopped, looking intently through the window at the display of tattoo designs as a light sprinkling of rain started up. 

“Let’s do it.” he said suddenly.

“Do what?!” Rey laughed, clutching onto his arm as they ducked under the protection of the shop’s awning.

He looked at her seriously.

“Well, tattoos, obviously.”

Rey’s giggle trailed off.

“Wh…. what kind of tattoo…?”

Luke waggled his ring finger at her.

“Well _that’s_ rude!” she retorted.

“Ring finger, my darling. _Not_ middle finger.” 

Her eyes widened.

“What-”

“I want you. Tattooed in my flesh. Here. So no one will ever have a doubt to whom I belong.” he said, nuzzling her cheek.

Rey nodded slowly, intertwining her fingers with his. 

“Ok… If you’re sure.” 

He grinned, leading her into the shop confidently.

“My love, my life, my Rey. We are married and we have a child together. You crossed an ocean to save me. Of course I want your very name embedded in my flesh for however many years I have left upon this earth.”

Half an hour later, a few hundred quid lighter, and a little bit more in pain, they departed the shop. Rey looked down at her ring finger, Luke’s name engraved in her skin in small, spidery black letters. She grinned; Luke inspecting his own new tattoo. 

“What do you think?” he asked.

“About what?” she replied.

“Tattoos. This is your first. Does it make you want to get others?”

“Luke Skywalker are you trying to turn me into a biker babe?” she scolded, hooking his beltloop with her non-tattooed hand and pulling him in for a kiss.

“Oh of course not…” he murmured. “Not unless you want to be.” 

Rey nuzzled his cheek, his beard scratching her skin lightly. 

“I’ll think about it.” she replied. “And speaking of biker chicks, if you think I’m letting you _anywhere_ near your bikes for the foreseeable future you are _sadly_ , sadly mistaken.” 

He chuckled, cuddling her close.

“Yes, dear.” Luke said innocently.

“Don’t you dare! I’m serious!” Rey scolded, giving him an indignant swat. 

“Of course, love. I know you are.” his tone shifted to one more serious. “You’re right. I’ll stay away from them for a bit.”

She smiled, placated for the moment. Rey hooked her arm in his and turned back to the street they had been walking down. 

“What would you like to do now? Where should we go after this stop?” 

They walked a few paces before Luke answered her query.

“Honestly?” 

“Yes?”

“This has truly been the vacation we deserve…. It’s been amazing. I’ve loved every moment here with you…. But I think I’m ready to go home. Such that it is.” 

Rey nestled into his shoulder, nodding in agreement. She was looking forward to having Izzy back in her arms again, not to mention seeing Poe and Finn as well as Han and Leia. 

“I’ll text Lando when we get back to the room. We’ll get flights out as soon as possible.” she said softly.

“Sounds like a plan.”

*&^%$#$%^&*

Two days later, one suitcase of clothing and souvenirs between them, and a ten-hour flight home; the Skywalkers finally set foot on their homeland soil. The sense of deja vu was overwhelming for Rey as she saw Han and Leia waiting with Izzy at the gate. This time Poe and Finn had elected to join them, Finn’s leg long since having healed, though he was still favouring it. Izzy was in Leia’s arms while Han held a comically large cardstock sign that read ‘Welcome Home Junior” in enourmous letters. 

For once, Luke didn’t scowl or make a snide comment as they breached the arrivals gate. Izzy squirmed in her aunt’s arms and Leia let her down. The little girl ran to Luke, who fell to his knees in front of her and wrapped her tightly in a hug, burying his face in her hair and squeezing her. 

“Daddy, I missed you _so_ much!” Izzy exclaimed.

Rey saw tears streaking her husband’s cheeks; all gathered knew better than to comment on them as Luke replied to his daughter.

“I missed you too, Izzy Bizzy. You have no idea how much.” he kissed her forehead.

“Why are you crying, Daddy? Aren’t you happy to be home?!” 

He smiled at her, kissing her again on both cheeks and on the tip of her button nose. 

“I’m incredibly happy to be home with my girls, Izzy. These are happy tears, see?” 

Rey reached down to stroke Izzy’s hair, her own eyes prickling with tears that threatened to burst forth. It didn’t seem real to finally have her family altogether and complete. She reached down and picked Izzy up, allowing Luke a moment to gather himself before he too stood. Han was there in two steps, the taller man wrapping Luke in a crushing embrace he didn’t seem to want to relinquish.

“Happy to have you back, kid.” Han said gruffly when he finally did release Luke. 

Squeezing Han’s arm, Luke gave him a small smile. Leia was upon him next, squeezing him tight and not paying any mind to any gawkers as she covered her brother’s face in kisses. 

“I’m gonna put you under house arrest for the next decade if you don’t quit getting yourself in trouble.” she scolded, hiccupping through her tears.

“I’m not going anywhere ever again.” Luke murmured, clutching his sister every bit as tightly as she was clinging to him. 

She kissed his cheek one final time, pushing him backwards and clearing her throat awkwardly as she wiped furiously at her eyes. Poe and Finn bestowed brief hugs on both Rey and Luke, Finn looking Luke up and down critically as if searching for any sign of continuing injury.

“I’m fine, kid.” Luke said in a soft voice. 

Finn squeezed his hand. 

“Yeah… You are aren’t you?” Finn smiled, satisfied by the improved, healthier Luke.

“Ok then. I feel like I’ve definitely said this before, but our place? Food?” Leia spoke up.

“Yes _please_!” Rey said, bouncing a giggling Izzy on her hip. “What time is it anyway?” 

“Time for food.” Han quipped, hip checking her gently as he took the handle of the rolling suitcase from her.

As they headed out of the airport. The Rey rode up front with Han as Leia and Luke spoke in hushed tones in the back seat over a car-seated Izzy. The normalcy slowly ebbed in like the tide; Rey felt herself relaxing as Han drove them leisurely through familiar streets and up the winding drive to the Organa-Solo house. BeBe was perched on the porch railing and Artoo lay in his doggy bed nearby her, both animals perking up their ears as the car came up the drive. 

It was as if no time had passed at all. Han and Rey prepped dinner as Luke watched Izzy playing in the yard with Poe and Finn, kicking a soccer ball almost as big as she was and laughing uproariously as Poe have to chase after each wild kick.

 

Rey brought Luke out a beer, kissing the top of his head almost out of habit. He caught her hand and she wrapped herself around him from behind, watching Izzy giving her uncles a run for their money. The usual delicious smells of cooking food wafted out from the kitchen as Han bellowed something about ‘lazy people better be coming back to help out’. Rey sighed; looking at her hand and Luke’s, resting on the railing side by side. The tattoos they’d gotten peeked out from under their wedding bands; a semi-secret they shared. 

“ _REEEYYYY!_ ” Han yelled from inside. “THE POTATOES ARE BURNING!” 

She sighed again, giving Luke a peck on the cheek before returning to help Han in the kitchen. Luke shifted in his seat, his eyes wandering first over his family still playing in the yard. The sun was beginning to go down and the fireflies were coming out. The scene was idyllic and Izzy had somehow wrangled Finn into giving her a piggy-back ride. She was laughing happily as Finn galloped around the yard, toddler arms securely wrapped around his neck. Luke felt uncommonly grateful that he’d found such a unique family. On their own, no one would ever put them all together. They worked, though. Throughout his life, he’d discovered that the best families were the found ones, not the ones you were saddled with at birth. 

His stomach clenched for a moment as he remembered the last moments of his father’s life. The situation had been untenable, it had been awful. He would forever be grateful to Anakin Skywalker for the actions he’d made in his last twenty-four hours of life, but it couldn’t ever truly erase the trauma or the damage the man had afflicted on his children decades prior. Luke wasn’t sure what he believed happened when people died, but he at least hoped wherever the old man was, he wasn’t suffering too much. 

Pushing down the memories both of Anakin Skywalker’s last moments as well as flashes of painful childhood memory, Luke’s mind turned to the problem of how he and Rey would build a new home in which to raise Izzy. He hadn’t seen their burned out home yet, but judging by what Rey had said there would be little salvageable. They could possibly live on the AA-589 in a pinch, but long term it wouldn’t work…. Perhaps they would be able to use whatever insurance money they’d been given…..

Luke’s attention was garnered by the crunching of tires on gravel as a sleek black sedan pulled up as far as it could into the driveway, parking behind Leia’s car. An equally sleek black-suited man exited the car. Instinctively, Luke looked around for something he could use as a weapon as the man walked purposefully up to the house. He’d just about settled on using the heavy rock Leia used to weight down the newspapers she read in the mornings out on the front porch when the man came to a halt in front of him, remaining a respectful distance away. 

“Mr Skywalker?” the elegantly dressed younger man inquired. 

Poe and Finn had stopped cavorting and their eyes were fixed on the interloper with extremely wariness and suspicion.

“Who wants to know?” Luke replied cautiously.

The man slowly reached into his jacket, withdrawing a thick manila envelope and carefully setting it on the railing between them. 

“Mr Skywalker, I’m here on behalf of the legal practice that took care of Mr Anakin Skywalker’s estate.” he looked at Luke curiously. “You _are_ Mr Luke Skywalker, aren’t you?” 

“Yes.” 

“My employer instructed me to bring you this and then to not bother you further. I understand you’ve recently been through a somewhat trying event…?” 

Luke nodded. 

“Very well, sir. I’ll leave you now. You’ll want to read over the documents enclosed as soon as possible. Should you have any questions, there is a number at which you may reach my employer on the cover page on the packet.” 

Without another word, the stranger departed, leaving Luke feeling confused and more than a little suspicious. He carefully opened the envelope, pulling out a small sheaf of papers. He read over the first page, then the second; brow furrowing and then raising high in shock as he delved further into the document.

“You have _got_ to be kidding me.” he exclaimed. 

“What?” Leia asked as she came through the door, a glass of iced-tea in hand. 

He waved the papers wordlessly, mouth ajar. Leia caught the papers and began reading through them. Her own eyes began to widen.

“Luke….” she breathed.

“No kidding.”

“This is… if this is real?”

“Not sure why it wouldn’t be. He was confused but mostly lucid most of the last few days.” 

Leia reread one of the pages, her eyes moving up and down the page as if searching for some kind of sign of falsification. 

“Luke, he’s even set up separate trusts for Izzy and Rey….” Leia said, her voice tight with an amalgam of conflicting emotions. 

“There’s one for you too.” Luke replied quietly.

“I….”

“This doesn’t excuse anything he ever did, Leia.” he said firmly, anxious that she should see he didn’t think their father’s behaviour should ever have been excused.

“It does go a long way towards helping to make up for it….” Leia murmured, sounding stunned.

Rey appeared, wiping her hands off on a towel and looking vaguely sweaty and annoyed.

“Han says we’re ready to go-” she caught the twins’ baffled expressions. “What’s going on?”

Luke grinned at her.

“Looks like we won’t have to worry about how we’re going to pay for building our new home, babe.” he held out the paper to her and she looked them over, her eyes now the third pair to grow wide in shock at the totals listed with the names of her husband, their child, herself, and his sister. Sums that would make all comfortable for the foreseeable future.

“Luke…”

“He tried to make good.” Luke said softly, looking between Rey and Leia and smiling sadly. “His death gives us the closure we need.”

Rey reached out and took his hand. 

“This is…. This is incredible….” 

“ _You’re_ incredible. _This_ is luck.” Luke replied. 

Her mind was already building the home in which they would live and raise Izzy; the house they’d welcome the new baby she was certain she was currently carrying, judging from the fact she'd now missed two periods and was feeling that distinct sense of naseau she had not missed at all. She sank down next to her husband, taking his face in her hands and kissing him with all her might. 

“We’re gonna be ok now, love.”

*&^%$#$%^&*


	20. Epilogue

**12 Years Later……**

A car’s wheels crunched on the gravel leading up to the Skywalker residence. Izzy jerked her head around so violently that Rey almost ripped out the chunk of hair she was curling for her daughter. 

“They’re here!” Izzy exclaimed excitedly.

“Well hang on and let me finish your hair first, jeez!” Rey scolded. 

Izzy fidgeted in the chair while Rey finished curling and pinning her daughter’s glossy brown hair up into a simple updo. She smoothed her hands over Izzy’s shoulders and bent down to press her cheek against her daughter’s, gazing at their faces side by side in the mirror. Isobel resembled her so much, except in the eyes. Luke’s eyes stared at her from the mirror.

Rey heard the telltale sound of Luke swearing and chasing their four year old around the living room. 

“BAILEY! YOU HAVE TO WEAR PANTS, WE HAVE GUESTS!” Luke was yelling.

She rolled her eyes, returning her attention to her daughter.

“You look beautiful, Iz. Are you happy with your hair?” 

“Yes, I am. Thanks mum.” Isobel grinned, her braces showing as she did so. 

Rey dropped a kiss to the top of her head, carefully avoiding the bobby pins and decorative barrette.

“I’d better go rescue your father; sounds like Bailey’s on a tear.”

She exited her daughter’s bedroom, walking into the living room to discover exactly the kind of chaos she had expected. Luke had Bailey pinned around the middle and was holding her upside down while he attempted to get her wriggling legs into pants. 

“It’s usually easier if you try that when they’re right side up.” Rey said, amused.

Luke stuck his tongue out defiantly at her. 

“MUUUMMMM. BAILEY’S BEEN IN MY ROOM AGAIN.” the voice of their middle daughter came from up the stairs. 

“Oh for kriff’s sake…” Rey grumbled. “Relax, Thea. I’m sure she didn’t bother anything.” 

Rey’s eyes snapped to her youngest daughter. 

“You _didn’t_ touch anything, did you?” she said warningly.

Bailey’s wide blue eyes were full of mischief and false innocence. 

“Oooh you are so gonna get it.”

There was knock at the door and Rey threw her arms up in exasperation.

“But not right now apparently.” 

She crossed to the door, opening it to the small herd of girls who’d come to carpool with Izzy to her first high-school dance. A shy girl in an ill fitting tux and cock-eyed bow tie cautiously entered last as Izzy’s school friends all gathered around each other and excitedly compared dresses and makeup. The quiet girl was carrying a plastic box in which a delicate pink corsage lay amidst a bed of paper strips, the matching boutonniere pinned awkwardly to the lapel of the jacket she wore. Luke frowned and Rey’s breath caught in her throat.

“Oh, now that won’t do at all.” Luke said.

There was a tense moment as Luke flipped his youngest back onto her feet and crossed the room to stand in front of the young woman who was evidently his daughter’s dance date. 

“S-Sorry?” 

“Your tie’s crooked.”

Luke reached out and straightened the polka-dotted tie, brushed the shoulders of the tux off critically, and then carefully unpinned the boutonniere and repinned it on correctly. He inspected the girl’s sleeve cuff.

“Are those safety pins?” he asked.

The nervous teenager nodded silently.

“Hang on a moment.”

Luke disappeared into his and Rey’s bedroom, emerging a few moments later with a pair of silver cufflinks in hand. 

“What’s your name, kid?” 

“Uhm, Taylor, sir.”

“Alright Uhm Taylor. Don’t lose these.” Luke said with a sly smile as he exchanged the safety pins for the simple but elegant cufflinks. When he had finished threading the cufflinks through their respective holes, he patted the girl on the shoulder. “You all have a good time at the dance. Don’t bring her home _too_ late.”

Taylor flushed almost purple. Izzy hurried past her father, shooting him a furious look. 

“Daaaad!” Izzy hissed.

His eldest daughter swatted him, holding out her wrist as Taylor carefully slid the corsage onto her wrist. That done, the small army of highschoolers departed in the minivan of one of the other mothers, talking and giggling excitedly. 

Rey waved at her daughter until she could no longer see Izzy’s shape, then returned indoors to find Bailey once again pantsless, Luke once again trying to chase her down, and a ten year old Thea who was sitting on the couch, arms crossed in a full on pout. She dropped a kiss on the top of her middle child’s head.

“I’ll take you for ice-cream just you and me tomorrow, ok?” she said in a voice low enough that only Thea could hear.

This brightened the child’s mood considerably and Thea only half begrudgingly agreed to help her mother with dinner while Luke sat at the kitchen table, his glasses perched on the end of his nose as he bounced a giggling Bailey on his knee. 

Later, when they’d finally managed to get the remaining two Skywalker children to sleep, Luke and Rey sat together in the deck chair they’d often inhabited, marvelling at the stars that seemed to twinkle like diamonds in an endless sky above their heads. Luke’s fingers traced nonsense patterns up and down her arms as she leaned into him.

“You know Taylor was Iz’s date, right?” Rey said after a long silence.

He chuckled.

“I’m not an idiot, Rey. Of course I knew that.” 

“And it’s not a problem to you?” she inquired cautiously.

“Why would it be a problem? Seems like a good kid. Besides, they’re teenagers. This is when they’re supposed to figure out who they are.” he said with all the decisive finality of a man declaring the sky to be blue.

Rey smiled, snuggling closer to her husband. He was a little greyer, a little softer around the middle, and a little more hard of hearing, but then so was she. Their lives had been like the ocean; full of ups and down and unexpected waves that sometimes knocked them off their feet, but like a good sailor, the Skywalkers always managed to get back up again and find their footing, riding those waves out until calm seas came back. 

“I love you, Mr Weirdo.” she said softly.

“I love you too, Mrs Weirdo.” he replied.

He turned his head to face her, craning his neck down to kiss her, at first chastely, then with more passion. A sense of calm washed over her and Rey lost herself in his embrace. 

All was as it should be in their cabin by the sea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you have it, folks.
> 
> Thanks for reading. It's been a rollercoaster. I know a lot of you were uncomfortable with some of the content and I appreciate you sticking around. It was certainly a bit of a departure from what I'm used to writing, but I feel it was a good exercise in stepping out of my comfort zone and exploring new territory.
> 
> <3 Thanks again!


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